Task Force Head Tito Oversees Recovery of Agricultural Land and Shrimp Ponds Buried in Disaster Silt

The Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) and head of the Task Force (Kasatgas) for Accelerated Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (PRR) of post-disaster Sumatra, Muhammad Tito Karnavian, has ensured that he will oversee the accelerated recovery of agricultural land and shrimp ponds affected by disaster in the Sumatran region.

Tito stated that he had coordinated with relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KP) and the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan), to accelerate handling, particularly to enable these lands to return to productivity.

He explained that the government has conducted a mapping of the condition of agricultural land and affected ponds as the basis for intervention.

“We will implement this after the Eid holiday – we will push hard. This is to help the ponds buried in silt to be revived,” said Tito in a written statement.

Based on the mapping results, there are lands that can still be directly optimised for replanting. However, there are also lands whose condition is already covered with debris, requiring a cleaning process first, such as stones and wood.

“This must be cleaned. It is what we call a new land reclamation programme. Although this is old land, the budget is allocated as a new land reclamation programme,” explained Tito.

Tito added that the duration of work will depend on the extent of the affected area. He believed that handling agricultural land will be a major undertaking requiring cross-sector coordination.

“I will certainly oversee it,” affirmed Tito.