Jambi (ANTARA News) - Jambi deputy governor Antony Zeidra Abidin held an impromptu meeting with a number of the heads of agencies and related authorities under his administration on Sunday to deal with the increasingly thickening fog over Jambi, as the result of forest and oil palm plantation fire.

Antony in charge of the Jambi province forest fire control and eradication team held the emergency meeting after inspecting the fire raging in the oil palm estates of PT NSP in Arang-Arang, a village in Muaro Jambi regency on Saturday (30/9).

The perpetrators must be firmly dealt with in accordance with the law, Antony said in the limited emergency meeting attended by head of the Forestry Agency Gatot Moeryanto, Chief of the Healthcare Agency Dr Oscar Karim and some other relevant authorities of the local administration.

He also said on the occasion that the Jambi provincial administration will report any plantation company which has set fire on forested land on purpose.

As an example he made reference to PT NSP whose forested land was on fire for the last few days, and on a certain occasion during that time Jambi Governor H Zulkifli Nurdin and Jambi police chief Brig Gen Carel Risakotta also took part in trying to put out the flames.

The land of PT NSP with its fire already put out, has already been cleared of wastes as the result of the fire, and ready for oil palm cultivation.

"I have also inspected the land of PT NSP on Saturday (30/9) many parts of which are still ablaze, indicating that the land was intentionally set on fire for land expansion," he said.

He pointed out that the perpetrators of the fire deserved a firm punishment because practically each year Jambi became victim of thick fog which is very detrimental to human health.

The team was also called on to conduct regular patrol in the plantations, especially those most-prone to fire, and take swift and immediate action to put out fires in those areas.

The Jambi provincial administration unfortunately still did not have adequate forest fire extinguishing equipment and facilities, and it was about time to think of improving the facilities by allocating the necessary funding in its regional budget, he said.