ISTANBUL, Oct 23 2026 Indonesia has recorded 333,470 acute respiratory infection (ARI) cases linked to forest and land fires, as worsening haze continues to threaten public health across several regions.
The Health Ministry’s director of environmental health, Then Suyanti, said 4,522 new cases were reported, while air quality in several areas had reached hazardous levels.
Six provinces have been prioritised for fire management: Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, South Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan.
Suyanti warned that exposure to wildfire smoke containing fine particulate matter such as PM2.5, carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide could cause respiratory infections, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and eye and skin irritation.
Meanwhile, President Prabowo Subianto warned that companies repeatedly implicated in forest and land fires could have their operating permits revoked. He said concessions withdrawn from offending companies could be reassigned to younger Indonesians.
Prabowo alleged that some companies had committed repeated violations, with certain firms reportedly recording as many as 19 offences. He said permits should be revoked if companies committed two violations.
In Samarinda, East Kalimantan, thousands of students and other demonstrators called on the government to declare the forest and land fires a national disaster.
Indonesia is experiencing an unusually prolonged dry season, with El Niño contributing to conditions favourable for wildfires.
-BERNAMA
