JAKARTA, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's Forestry Ministry has imposed administrative sanctions on 32 companies suspected of involvement in forest and land fires, covering a combined concession area of 1.93 million hectares, Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said Wednesday.
About 18,000 hectares of land within the affected concessions had been burned, Antoni said, adding that the latest measures included suspending the operations of six companies and ordering them to restore damaged ecosystems.
The ministry could also pursue criminal proceedings against companies if investigations uncover evidence of legal violations, he said.
Antoni said the ministry was handling 120 cases related to forest and land fires, with further developments expected next week. ■
