Padang-The Railway Engineering Center (BTP) Class II Padang through the Service Unit (Satpel) is currently focused on increasing supervision of railway assets in several regions in West Sumatra (West Sumatera), especially maintaining the current non-active railway lines.

This is due to the current state of inactive railway lines in some places of West Sumatra is specifically concerned with frequent rail theft and the number of illegal buildings that stand on the tracks, including semi-permanent buildings, permanent buildings (ruko), and other buildings.

"It is very sad with the many cases of rail theft and also the number of illegal developments that often occur. Therefore, we will focus on handling and supervising these assets," said Padang BTP Head Supandi in his chair on Thursday, 20 July 2023.

BTP Padang noted that in 2022 there were 6 cases of rail theft scattered at several points, starting from Padang Panjang Station - Singkarak Station - Kacang Station - Solok Station to Muaro Kalaban Station. Four of these cases have reached court verdicts, and 2 more cases are still being investigated by the local police.

As of mid-year, BTP Padang has also recorded six cases of rail theft. With the number of thefts from 2022 to date, the state's loss is estimated at around Rp 3.3 billion.

In addition to the incidence of rail theft, in several areas that are passed by inactive railway  lines, there are also many people who carry out construction on railway assets in West Sumatra. As in the Padang Panjang-Bukittingi-Payakumbuh crossing to Limbanang and several other areas.

"Currently, BTP Padang has an extension in three areas in West Sumatra that have railway lines, namely Sawahlunto Satpel, Padang Panjang Satpel, and Pariaman Satpel. These three units play an active role in maintaining and supervising our railway assets," he said.

Furthermore, he stated that, in addition to focusing on asset supervision, as will the Sawahlunto Satpel, BTP Padang will indirectly participate in the preservation of the Ombilin Sawahlunto Coal Mining Heritage (WTB BOS) in Sawahlunto, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site Ombilin Cool Mining Heritage Of Sawahlunto since 2019.

According to him, BTP Padang's commitment to preserve and manage public assets would not be carried out by a single party. It requires genuine cooperation from a variety of groups, including the local administration (pemda), local police, and, of course, the community as the main guard of this public asset.

Previously, BTP Padang together with the Directorate of Railway Safety, had also carried out synergies with local governments and other relevant stakeholders aimed at developing networks and protecting state assets to accelerate economic growth in West Sumatra. In this way, it is hoped that cooperation can continue for the progress of the region and the railways in West Sumatra.

"This guarding is a shared responsibility, the railway assets that we guard are state property. Consequently, all people are responsible for this," he expected.