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Indonesia to give Jakarta aid to limit exodus amid COVID-19 outbreak - minister

Workers arrange coffins for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) victims in Bekasi

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia plans to give special assistance to residents of Jakarta within two weeks to limit the exodus from the capital during the Ramadan holiday period amid the COVID-19 outbreak, the social affairs minister said on Thursday.

"What we're doing is providing an additional programme to limit the dispersal of 'mudik' travelers from Jakarta to regions," Minister Juliari Batubara told reporters after a cabinet meeting, referring to the tradition of people returning to their home towns and villages after the Muslim fasting month.

Officials have said travelers will not be banned but will need to have medical checks if they return to their home villages.

COVID-19 is the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

(Reporting by Maikel Jefriando and Stanley Widianto; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)