Banjaratma Heritage Rest Area

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The rest area's main building in 2021

The Banjaratma Heritage Rest Area, or Rest Area KM 260B, is a rest area on the Trans-Java Toll Road within Brebes Regency, Central Java, Indonesia.

It is located on kilometer 260 within the Pejagan-Pemalang section of the toll road's length, in the Jakarta direction.[1] It occupies the site of a former colonial sugar factory. The factory itself operated from 1913 to 1998, and was abandoned for around twenty years. It was revitalized by a consortium of government-owned companies following the opening of the toll road, and the rest area began operations in 2019.

History

Sugar mill

The Banjaratma sugar mill, owned initially by Amsterdam-based sugar plantation company NV Cultuurmaatschappij, began construction in 1908 and operations in 1913.[2] The factory doubles as a research station on sugarcane plantation and milling.[3] In its operations, to secure a supply of sugarcane, the factory "rented" land from surrounding landholding peasants, who in turn often moved to work in urban areas while landless farmers from elsewhere cultivated the sugarcane.[4]

While most sugar mills in Java closed during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies, the Banjaratma mill continued to operate.[5] During the Indonesian National Revolution, the factory was seized by local pro-independence militias from the Japanese occupiers.[6] A number of Eurasian workers of the factory were rounded up and killed in the Bersiap era.[7] After Indonesian independence and nationalization of Dutch firms, the sugar mill was owned by the government-operated agricultural companies.[8] Reduced supply of sugarcane, coupled with increased operating costs and aging machinery caused the factory to shutdown in 1998, its final production being done in 1997.[9] The building was abandoned, and a rumored haunting even became subject of a 2013 Trans 7 TV episode.[10]

Revitalization

By 2016, construction of the Trans-Java Toll Road had reached Brebes Regency, and the path of the toll road (specifically the Pejagan-Pemalang section) passed within the sugar mill's 25-hectare complex. There was initial local opposition to the construction, as at that time the building had been designated a Cultural Property of Indonesia.[11] In order to preserve and utilize the old factory, a consortium of six Indonesian government-owned firms invested Rp 250 billion for the factory's revitalization and for the construction of a toll road rest area.[12] It began operations on 17 March 2019.[13]

Facilities

The rest area contains standard facilities for Indonesian rest areas such as a mosque, a Pertamina gas station, parking spaces, and a food court.[14] As one of the largest rest areas in Indonesia, the complex measures 10.4 hectares with the main building itself covering 1.6 hectares, and contains several tourist attractions such as a colonial-era steam locomotive which carried sugarcane and a mini-zoo. It is also host to a number of stalls selling products from local SMEs of Brebes, such as salted eggs.[14][15] The main building's interior is relatively preserved, with the original ornamented brick walls sitting between modern stalls.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Prakoso, Johanes Randy (8 June 2019). "Ada Bekas Pabrik Gula yang Jadi Rest Area Kekinian di Brebes". detikTravel (in Indonesian). Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  2. ^ "Megahnya "Rest Area" KM 260B, Menelusuri Jejak Sejarah Pabrik Gula". KOMPAS.com (in Indonesian). 10 June 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Menelisik Bekas Pabrik Gula Banjaratma di Brebes". SINDOnews.com (in Indonesian). 21 January 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  4. ^ Knight, G. R. (1994). "Gully Coolies, Weed-Women and Snijvolk: The Sugar Industry Workers of North Java in the Early Twentieth Century". Modern Asian Studies. 28 (1): 51–76. doi:10.1017/S0026749X00011690. ISSN 0026-749X. JSTOR 312921. S2CID 145527142.
  5. ^ Lucas, Anthony E. (1983). The Bamboo Spear Pierces the Payung: the Revolution Against the Bureaucratic Elite in North Central Java in 1945. Australia National University. p. 45. doi:10.25911/5d7633feb5539.
  6. ^ Lucas 1983, pp. 121–122.
  7. ^ Lucas 1983, p. 230.
  8. ^ Translations on South and East Asia. Joint Publications Research Service. 1962. p. 14.
  9. ^ "Menelisik Bekas Pabrik Gula Banjaratma di Brebes". SINDOnews.com (in Indonesian). 21 January 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Tukul Kupas Hantu ' Noni Yolanda ' Penghuni PG Banjaratma Di Trans7". Brebes News (in Indonesian). 13 December 2013. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Pabrik Gula Banjaratma, Jejak Sukses Belanda dalam Teknologi Mesin Uap". SINDOnews.com (in Indonesian). 20 January 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  12. ^ "Rest Area Tol Pejagan-Pemalang Telan Rp250 Miliar". Bisnis.com (in Indonesian). 28 February 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  13. ^ "Membingkai Jejak Masa Lalu, Pabrik Gula Banjaratma" (in Indonesian). Ministry of Finance. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  14. ^ a b "5 Hal Menarik "Rest Area" Banjaratma Brebes yang Jadi Favorit Pemudik". KOMPAS.com (in Indonesian). 11 June 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  15. ^ "Singgah di Rest Area Brebes KM 260B, Ada Apa Saja?". KOMPAS.com (in Indonesian). 18 November 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
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