Pangkalan Bun

Pangkalan Bun is the capital of West Kotawaringin Regency in Central Kalimantan Province, on Borneo, Indonesia. It is an agglomeration of seven urban villages (kelurahan) plus one nominally rural village (desa), all of which are part of South Arut District (kecamatan Arut Selatan), with a combined population of 108,814 in mid 2024. It is also the administrative headquarters of South Arut District (Arut Selatan). The town is mostly situated on the east bank of the Arut River, although the kelurahan of Menawai Seberang and Raja Seberang lie on the west bank of the river ("Seberang" in Indonesian means "across" or "on the other side of" [the river]). The seven kelurahan (urban villages) of the district have a land area of 652 km2 and a population of 94,114 according to the official estimates for mid 2024; in addition to these, Pasir Panjang (which is technically classed as a rural village (desa), but is an urbanised part of the agglomeration) has a further 14,700 inhabitants in 2024. All these are listed below, together with the rural villages in the district, together with their postcodes. Pangkalan Bun is served by Iskandar Airport. Several airlines (which is Nam Air, Citilink, and Batik Air) fly to this airport. Shipping services provide connections to Jakarta, Surabaya, and Semarang. Birutė Galdikas established her base, Camp Leakey, for the study and conservation of orangutans about 48 kilometres (30 mi) from Pangkalan Bun up the Sekonyer River. The site was expanded from the original hut in 1971. Its facilities, supported by the Orangutan Foundation International, are a part of the Tanjung Puting National Park.