- Indonesia has decided to shift its capital city from Jakarta to the province of East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo.
- The reason for shifting the capital is (a)to ensure a more equitable development amid environmental concerns (b)traffic congestion and air pollution in Jakarta and (c)Jakarta is prone to annual flooding and is one of the world’s fastest sinking cities.
- However,environmental groups have raised concerns about endangered species in the area.Kalimantan is one of the few places on earth where orangutans live in their natural habitat.
- Further,other countries that have moved their capital include (a)Nigeria – Lagos to Abuja (b)Brazil – Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia (c)Myanmar – Yangon to Naypyidaw (d)Russia – St Petersburg to Moscow and (e)Pakistan – Karachi to Islamabad.