PONTIANAK, thekabarnews.com—President Prabowo Subianto departed for Kalimantan on Saturday, August 22. He went to inspect and directly oversee Indonesia’s response to forest and land fires (Karhutla) across the island.

Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya announced the visit after Prabowo assigned senior Indonesian military (TNI) and National Police officials. These officials must coordinate firefighting operations in four Kalimantan provinces.

“On Saturday morning, August 22, President Prabowo flew directly to Kalimantan to inspect and lead the simultaneous response to forest and land fires in Kalimantan,” Teddy said, according to Setkab officials.

The statement did not disclose the president’s complete itinerary or specify every location he planned to inspect.

Prabowo divided operational responsibility among senior security officials. This was done to accelerate coordination with provincial and district administration, BNPB, firefighters and local communities:

West Kalimantan: TNI Commander Gen. Agus Subiyanto and National Police Chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo.
Central Kalimantan: Army Chief of Staff Gen. Maruli Simanjuntak and Deputy National Police Chief Sr. Comr. Dedi Prasetyo.
South Kalimantan: Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Muhammad Ali and the National Police Chief’s principal assistant for operations, Comr. Gen. Muhammad Fadil Imran.
East Kalimantan: Deputy TNI Commander Gen. Tandyo Budi Revita and Mobile Brigade Corps Commander Comr. Gen. Ramdani Hidayat.

“The President instructed officials to handle the forest and land fires as quickly and effectively as possible. He wants residents to resume their normal activities,” Teddy said.

“The President also ordered firm legal action against every violation discovered, in accordance with applicable regulations,” he added.

The order calls for authorities to investigate suspected violations through established legal procedures. The presidential statement did not identify any person or company as responsible for the fires.

The deployment comes as dry weather and smoke disrupt public health and economic activity in several parts of Kalimantan.

The Forestry Ministry’s SiPongi monitoring system recorded 950 hotspots nationwide on August 20. The total was down 56.2 percent from 2,170 one day earlier.

West Kalimantan’s count fell from 784 to 82. Central Kalimantan dropped from 694 to 22 and South Kalimantan from 85 to 12. The ministry cautioned that the decline did not mean all fires had been extinguished.

A hotspot indicates an abnormal surface temperature detected by a satellite. It does not necessarily represent a separate fire, and teams must verify each detection on the ground.

Indonesia has intensified ground suppression, aerial water bombing, weather-modification operations and patrols in affected areas.

The integrated operation involves the Forestry Ministry, BNPB, BMKG, regional governments, TNI, police, Manggala Agni firefighters, volunteers and local communities.

The continuing threat coincides with exceptionally dry conditions. BMKG reported that 76.5 percent of Indonesia’s seasonal zones had entered the dry season. 87.28 percent of the country recorded below-normal rainfall.

A powerful El Niño has further increased drought and wildfire risks. Early detection and consistent law enforcement are now central to the government’s response.