Indonesian President Joko Widodo is under mounting pressure over his handling of the coronavirus crisis, with critics warning he has not done enough to stop the spread of the virus in the country.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Indonesia has risen rapidly to a total of 1528 on Tuesday, prompting growing calls from governors for strict provincial lockdowns to stop the annual mudik (return home), when up to 20 million people leave major cities to go back to their villages for religious holidays.

A truck sprays disinfectant to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus on a street in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Tuesday. Credit:AP

In a sign of the growing tensions between Joko's central government and provincial governors, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, said that between March 6 and 29, his city buried 283 people in line with coronavirus protocols, though not all the dead had confirmed cases of the disease.

Given the national government has stated the country-wide death toll is 136, Anies' comments suggest what is already widely suspected — the number of dead and infections could already be much higher than official figures. They also highlight the inadequate testing rates in Indonesia, which may be significantly under-counting the cases.