The water canal will be around 1.5km long, running beneath Jl. Otto Iskandar Dinata, near the Statistics High School (STIS), to the flood canal section in Jl. DI Panjaitan, both in East Jakarta.
Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto said on 21 January that the canal project was one of the government’s moves to counter floods in the capital.
"Although the Ciliwung and Pesanggrahan rivers overflowed, water levels in the East Flood Canal are apparently still low. So it could take more," Djoko said.
Djoko acknowledged that the government had discussed the grand plan long before, but had never made it a top priority until 17 January’s massive flood. He was optimistic that the plan would work.
He said that the line would be built underground to reduce the consequences of troublesome land acquisitions. The team was left with detailed measuring and design finalization, he said, and would finish the job within two months.
However, he pointed out that budgeting might encounter some problems as the construction had yet to be inserted into the ministry’s 2013 budget. He said there could be other ways to back up the plan, including by revising the budget or using the ministry’s unused funds from last year.
"Otherwise, we will start working on it in 2014," he said.
On 21 January 2013, workers started working on the project at the flood canal. Not too many houses are locate near the area, making it easier for the government to acquire land affected by the project.
Jakarta has been hit by floods since 17 January, putting the capital under a state of emergency until 27 January. As of 21 January, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency recorded that 45,954 evacuees and a total of 245,119 residents had been affected by the flood. The most affected areas are in West Jakarta and North Jakarta with 22,315 people and 17,237 people fleeing their homes in each area.
