Manggala Agni Personnel and Equipment Standards Evaluated for Forest Fire Preparedness
Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni is evaluating the standard requirements for Manggala Agni personnel and equipment as part of strengthening preparedness for forest and land fires (karhutla). The evaluation aims to ensure the brigade can operate optimally and safely while carrying out their duties.
Speaking during a meeting with the Directorate General of Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Forestry, Minister Raja Antoni stated the need to establish a minimum requirement that Manggala Agni must possess as a basis for operational support in fire suppression. “We need to determine what we call the Minimum Essential Cost, as in defence, the minimum required so that Manggala Agni is equipped with something that does not endanger lives or physical safety, and that equipment is available promptly,” the minister said in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Beyond equipment, the minister is also evaluating various fire prevention measures, including the necessity of implementing Weather Modification Operations and monitoring groundwater levels in vulnerable areas. The evaluation is intended to ensure that every control measure is based on field conditions and actual needs. “If Weather Modification Operations were only conducted twice in early January, for instance, five or seven times, we need to know how many are truly required. But once again, the government is being improved, we must check whether the groundwater levels in Riau and West Kalimantan are truly below the threshold,” he added.
Raja Antoni emphasised that the budget for forest fire suppression must be used carefully and measurably. He requested that all needs be calculated in detail so that every form of support genuinely addresses the requirements of field officers. “Be very careful, do not take advantage of the situation. Calculate properly what our colleagues in the field need,” he said. The minister stressed that this evaluation is part of efforts to strengthen the forest fire management system sustainably.