Haze from Indonesian fires causes pollution spike in Malaysia

PHOTO: Kuala Lumpur has been blanketed in haze from agricultural fires in Indonesia. (Instagram: fizoomar)

Pollution readings soared past the 200-point level in the Malaysian government's hourly air-quality index on Sunday morning (local time).Acrid smoke billowing from agricultural fires in Indonesia has caused a spike in air pollution in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur.

The Ministry of Education ordered schools shut on Monday in the capital and three states due to health concerns, the second time this month it has had to issue such an order.

On Saturday, as the haze built up, an airport just outside Kuala Lumpur closed temporarily as visibility dropped to less than 400 metres.

The closure forced at least 20 flights to be cancelled, according to Malaysian media reports, and followed Singapore's shuttering of schools on Friday as air there worsened to "hazardous" levels.

Parts of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have been shrouded for weeks in a choking smoke haze from tinder-dry parts of Indonesia's Sumatra island.

The haze crisis — the worst since mid-2013 — grips the region nearly every year during the dry season, when agricultural land is illegally cleared by burning.

Indonesia has faced pressure from its neighbours to address the problem since it first emerged about 20 years ago.

But the issue has persisted, especially as plantations have expanded, driven in large part by rising global demand for palm oil, a key ingredient in a vast range of everyday consumer products.

Malaysian skies have been a smoky grey for most of the past month, and authorities on September 15 ordered schools closed in Kuala Lumpur and neighbouring states.

On Friday, Singapore's foreign minister K Shanmugam lashed out at what he called "shocking statements" by senior Indonesian officials perceived as making light of the problem.

Haze levels in Singapore had improved by Sunday, dropping below the "unhealthy" mark.

Indonesian authorities have indicated the problem may not clear up anytime soon.

National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the "fires continue to rage" despite a push to extinguish the blazes on farm expanses and peatlands that has included the deployment of military personnel.

He said new fires were cropping up, while those that were previously extinguished had re-emerged in peatlands or had been deliberately reignited.

He added that pollution readings in several Indonesian cities were at hazardous levels, and that nearly 168,000 people in affected areas has sought medical treatment for respiratory problems.

Indonesia had earlier declared a state of emergency in Sumatra's hard-hit Riau province.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-09-27/smoke-from-indonesia-causes-air-pollution-spike-in-malaysia/6808080

Sime Darby and 2 other companies rebut haze claims

Sime Darby and 2 other companies rebut haze claims

 

JUNE 24, 2013

Three companies -- Asia Pacific Resources International (APRIL), Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), and Sime Darby -- have issued rebuttals after being named by Indonesia's Senior Presidential Aide Kuntoro Mangkusubroto as being among several responsible for fire hotspots in Riau Province.

In a statement released to the media, Asia Pacific Resources International Limited (APRIL) said Indonesia's accusation requires verification.

"They do not correspond with intensive monitoring on-the-ground conducted by APRIL in its own concessions over the past several weeks nor with information on Friday from Indonesia's official national body for Meteorology, Climate and Geophysiccs, which identified 13 hotspots in Riau, none of which are on APRIL's concessions," APRIL said in a statement.

The company said the Director General of the Ministry of Forestry, Bambang Hendroyono, had confirmed Friday the fires causing the haze were mostly occurring on community land, not forestry concessions.

APRIL said it had maintained a "strict no-burn policy in its concessions" since it began operations in 1994, reported CNA.

It added the small number of fires within its concessions over the past three weeks were spread from those that began outside its concessions and were extinguished by its fire fighting teams.

Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) also said it does not practise, and "highly condemns" the slash and burn activity for its detrimental impact on the environment.

The company said it is deeply concerned about the forest fires and resulting haze in Riau, Sumatra, and is urging others to support it in implementing "zero burning and zero deforestation practices".

APP said its fire fighting crews and community members have been working to control the fires in its suppliers' concessions.

"The task is very complex because of the combination between strong wind, high temperature and the fact that the fire has reached peat land," APP said in its statement.

APP added that it welcomes opportunities to work with NGOs, companies, communities and governments to address the haze problem.

Malaysian plantation giant Sime Darby, which runs PT Tunggal Mitra, has also denied reports of any fires on its property.

Sime Darby Plantation said there were no fires in any of its operating areas in Indonesia, and that it strictly adheres to a zero burning policy in its operations.

Tunggal Mitra Plantation covers almost 14-thousand hectares, the majority of which is used for planting and development.

Sime Darby said there are some parts occupied by local communities, and that it is unable to exert control over those areas. -  June 24, 2013.

 http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/litee/malaysia/article/sime-darby-and-2-other-companies-rebut-haze-claims/litee/malaysia/article/haze-update-malaysia-singapore-should-know-themselves-says-indonesian-minister

Boost for Iskandar

Boost for Iskandar Posted on February 27, 2013 - Property News. By ZAZALI MUSA JOHOR BARU: Iskandar Malaysia will benefit immensely with the implementation of the rapid transit system (RTS) and high speed rail (HSR) linking Malaysia and Singapore. Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) chief executive officer Datuk Ismail Ibrahim said the systems would create good prospects and strong economic growth for the region. He said strong economic growth would in return generate employment for local population especially for knowledge and skilled workers. “We at Irda will give our utmost cooperation to both the Malaysia and Singapore Governments in implementing the two projects,” said Ismail. He said this in a press conference after hosting the annual luncheon for the bureau chiefs and the representatives of the media organisations based in Johor Baru recently. Last week, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and his Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong jointly announced their agreement to develop the RTS and the HSR. The RTS will link Johor Baru and Singapore to improve accessibility and connectivity between the two points and will be up and running by 2018. The HSR on the other hand will cut travel times from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore in just 90 minutes from five hours of driving and seven hours by rail, and expected to be completed by 2020. “A comprehensive integrated transportation system is needed within Iskandar to incorporate and support the RTS and the HSR,” said Ismail. He said there would be three options for the RTS project for the trains to run above ground (grate) or via undersea tunnel. Ismail said the final outcome on what kind of link would be built would all depend on the recommendations of the study of the two governments involved as well as costing. The terminating stations of the link will be in at former site of the Tanjung Puteri Lorry Custom Complex here and in the vicinity of Republic Polytechnic in Singapore. The RTS will have co-located CIQ facility in Singapore and here so that commuters need to clear immigration only once for each way of travel. Johor Baru and Woodlands in Singapore is linked by the 1.056km Johor Causeway completed in 1932, and between 80,000 and 100,000 vehicles use it daily. Johor and the republic are also connected via the Second Link, a dual three-lane carriageway linking Tanjung Kupang to Tuas in Singapore, the bridge is about 1.9km long. http://www.starproperty.my/index.php/property-news/boost-for-iskandar/

Woman cheated of $6,200 in Johor Baru scam

Woman cheated of $6,200 in Johor Baru scam

By Cherie Thio
A Singaporean hawker assistant holidaying in Malaysia was cheated of RM15,000 (S$6,200) - much of it her winnings from the Genting Highlands casino - then taken back to Singapore in a car.

When she tried to make a police report at the Singapore checkpoint in Woodlands, she said she was told that she had to report the crime to the Malaysian police as it happened there.

She decided to go back to Malaysia in the same car. When she started panicking, the driver showed her a knife he had with him. He then stopped at an isolated forested area, pulled her out of the car and sped off.

After one hour, she managed to flag down a passing car, and the driver took her to a Malaysian relative's home.

http://www.newmalaysianews.com/news-daily.php?http://story.singaporestar.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/a677a0718b69db72/id/203288529/

50 makanan terlezat - asam laksa (Malaysia)

Berikut ini adalah daftar lengkap dari 50 makanan terlezat di dunia versi CNN.

1. Rendang (Indonesia)
2. Nasi goreng (Indonesia)
3. Sushi (Jepang)
4. Tom yam goong (Thailand)
5. Pad thai (Thailand)
6. Som tham (Thailand)
7. Dim sum (Hong Kong)
8. Ramen (Jepang)
9. Bebek peking (China)
10. Massaman curry (Thailand)
11. Lasagna (Italia)
12. Kimchi (Korea)
13. Chicken rice (Singapura)
14. Sate (Indonesia)
15. Es krim (AS)
16. Kebab (Turki)
17. Gelato (Italia)
18. Croissant (Prancis)
19. Green curry (Thailand)
20. Pho (Vietnam)
21. Fish 'n' chips (Inggris)
22. Egg tart (Hong Kong)
23. Bulgogi (Korea)
24. Fried rice (Thailand)
25. Cokelat (Meksiko)
26. Penang asam laksa (Malaysia)
27. Tacos (Meksiko)
28. Barbecue pork (Hong Kong)
29. Chili crab (Singapura)
30. Cheeseburger (AS)
31. Fried chicken (AS)
32. Lobster (global)
33. Seafood paella (Spanyol)
34. Shrimp dumpling (Hong Kong)
35. Neopolitan pizza (Italia)
36. Mo nam tok (Thailand)
37. Potato chips (AS)
38. Warm brownie dan es krim vanilla (global)
39. Masala dosa (India)
40. Bibimbap (Korea)
41. Galbi (Korea)
42. Hamburger (Jerman)
43. Fajitas (Meksiko)
44. Laksa (Singapura)
45. Roti prata (Singapura)
46. Sirup maple (Kanada)
47. Fettucini alfredo (Italia)
48. Parma ham (Italia)
49. Lechon (Filipina)
50. Gui cuon (Vietnam)

Floods, landslides force cancellation of KTMB services

Floods, landslides force cancellation of KTMB services
2011/01/31

KUALA LUMPUR: Floods and landslides between Bahau and Tampin in Negri Sembilan and Kluang in Johor have forced Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) to cancel several train services to the east and south.

In a statement, KTMB said among the affected services were Ekspress Rakyat connecting KL Sentral and Singapore, and Ekspress Sinaran Timur connecting Kuala Lipis and Singapore.


Passengers on the Gemas-Singapore service would be ferried by bus from Gemas to Kluang before proceeding with their train journey to Singapore while the service from Singapore to Gemas would stop at Kluang and passengers would be ferried to Gemas, it said.

Passengers who were affected by the cancellation could either ask for a refund or have the journey changed to other dates, it said.


Further information can be obtained from KTMB at 1-300-88-5862.
- BERNAMA

http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/Floods_landslidesforcecancellationofKTMBservices/Article/#ixzz1Cb2ltlve

Malaysia is a top ten tourism market for India

Malaysia is a top ten tourism market for India

SINGAPORE: Malaysia is now one of the top ten markets providing tourism traffic to India.

Appreciating this, India is launching an aggressive campaign to highlight features of interest to Malaysians, according to the Singapore-based Government of India Tourism Office.

The Director, Rajesh Talwar, said:" Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand are India's key markets in Southeast Asia."

India recorded some 325,000 visitors from the Asean region last year. Malaysia accounted for 117,000 tourists, followed by Singapore with 96,000 and Thailand with 64,000.

Telwar said his office had staged road shows in Kuala Lumpur in June and Penang in July.

A road would be held soon in Kuching and another in Johor Baru. - Bernama