Terror in the lift

Today, four in five Singaporeans live in HDB flats. Dwelling in a flat is second nature. But it wasn’t always this way.

Credit: Mailer_Diablo, CC BY-SA 3.0.

I found a newspaper interview from 1984 (the year I was born!) shedding light on how kampung dwellers had to learn how to live all over again, after they were resettled to high-rise flats:

Madam Oh Kim Toh used to fear the elevator.

She said in Fujian: “You stand in there, and the door closes. What if it never opens again? Or worse, the lift may jam halfway. I may suffocate.”

A little diversion: This article came out in the 1980s, during the madness that was the Speak Mandarin Campaign which swept through Singapore. The mainstream media dutifully marched in step with the Government, renaming anything that had a “dialect” origin - Nee Soon to Yishun, Peck San to Bishan, Au Kang to Hougang, and so on. Here, Hokkien - the name of the language - was renamed “Fujian”. Mercifully, the Government halted this by the latter half of the decade, but some of the changes - like the place names I mentioned above - have persisted. This is covered in my book Jalan Singapura.

The 51-year-old housewife is also unused to other things, such as the flush toilet, as she had been going to a wooden hut over the fish pond during her kampung days.

The rubbish chute in her Yishun Ring Road flat is almost a miracle to her.

“We used to keep the garbage in a bin and take it to the backyard for burning. Now my children tell me to just dump it into this chute!”

For one born into rural life, at Lorong Buangkok, and who had spent more than 30 years in a wooden house, moving to a high-rise flat was, in many ways, relearning how to live.

Madam Oh had to learn how to use a lift, the flush toilet and the rubbish chute.

“My three children taught me things like pressing the right buttons in a lift to get to the floors I want,” she said.

My supervisor, who is in his late 40s, also told me that when he first used a lift as a child, he burst into tears because he was afraid of the claustrophobic space!

Even with encouragement and help from her family, Madam Oh took several months to settle down.

“I could not sleep because the flat was very warm compared with the kampung house. I still miss the open space and cool breezes after seven years.”

But Madam Oh definitely does not miss the floods, which could rise to chest height, the mosquitoes and the inconvenience of having to draw water from a well.

“I’m free too. There are no more pigs and poultry to look after.”

Expenses, however, have increased since they now have to pay PUB bills and services and conservancy charges on their three-room flat.

“But I guess that is the price you pay for comfort,” she said.

And now it is the current generation who has no idea how living in a kampung is like.

Post-election geopolitical realities

The dust of the 2020 General Election has settled, and the 14th Parliament of Singapore has convened. The boundaries of the wards of the Republic’s 17 Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) have also been demarcated, indicating the areas of responsibility of their Members of Parliament. For a good number of GRCs, ward boundaries have shifted from before the General Election. New wards have been birthed, while others have been renamed or dissolved. These shifts create new geopolitical realities for the people living and working inside them.

For this post, I relied on excellent Google Maps of wards of the 13th and 14th Parliaments of Singapore, created by Yudhishthra Nathan.

Here are the GRCs which have seen significant changes in ward boundaries after GE2020:

A. Chua Chu Kang GRC

Before GE2020: Four wards

1. Nanyang

2. Keat Hong

3. Chua Chu Kang

4. Bukit Gombak

After GE2020: Four wards

1. Keat Hong - Redrawn to absorb most of Nanyang ward, and part of Hong Kah North SMC.

2. Brickland - Created from parts of Keat Hong, Chua Chu Kang, and Bukit Gombak wards.

3. Chua Chu Kang

4. Bukit Gombak

Nanyang ward has been shifted to West Coast GRC.

Trivia: Before GE2020, Lim Chu Kang, the Old Choa Chu Kang Road area, and the western reservoirs of Sarimbun, Murai, and Poyan were part of Nanyang ward. Now, they are part of “Keat Hong” - which is far away!

B. West Coast GRC

Before GE2020: Four wards

1. Ayer Rajah

2. Boon Lay

3. West Coast

4. Telok Blangah

After GE2020: Five wards

1. Nanyang - Redrawn, massively reduced in size, and moved over from Chua Chu Kang GRC.

2. Ayer Rajah-Gek Poh - Gek Poh was sliced out of Hong Kah North SMC and appended to Ayer Rajah ward as an exclave.

3. Boon Lay

4. West Coast

5. Telok Blangah

Trivia 1: Nanyang Technological University is still part of Nanyang ward, but now under West Coast GRC.

Trivia 2: As the place name implies, Ayer Rajah-Gek Poh ward is in two parts.

C. Sembawang GRC

Before GE2020: Five wards

1. Woodlands

2. Admiralty

3. Sembawang

4. Canberra

5. Gambas

After GE2020: Five wards

1. Woodlands - Gave up some land to both Sembawang ward and Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC’s Marsiling ward.

2. Admiralty

3. Sembawang West - Formed from the western half of Sembawang ward.

4. Canberra

5. Sembawang Central - Formed from parts of Sembawang and Gambas wards.

Gambas ward has been dissolved.

Trivia 1: Woodlands MRT Station is no longer in Woodlands ward; it is now under Marsiling ward in Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC - which also has Marsiling MRT Station.

Trivia 2: Woodlands ward is now in two parts.

Trivia 3: Canberra Estate and Canberra MRT Station aren’t in Canberra ward - they are in Sembawang Central ward.

D. Nee Soon GRC

Before GE2020: Five wards

1. Nee Soon South

2. Kebun Baru

3. Chong Pang

4. Nee Soon Central

5. Nee Soon East

After GE2020: Five wards

1. Nee Soon South - Sembawang Air Base has been handed over to Chong Pang ward; most of Lower Seletar Reservoir has been moved to Nee Soon Link ward.

2. Chong Pang

3. Nee Soon Central - Gained part of Nee Soon East ward.

4. Nee Soon East - Absorbed part of Sembawang GRC’s Gambas ward.

5. Nee Soon Link - Formed from parts of Nee Soon South and Sembawang GRC’s Gambas ward.

Kebun Baru ward has been carved out as an SMC.

Trivia 1: I’m quite pleased with the geographical reach of Nee Soon GRC, because both Yishun town (I’m excluding Canberra Estate, which is relatively new) and the historic Nee Soon area (around Nee Soon Road) are inside it. This is a rarity!

Trivia 2: “Nee Soon Link” sounds like the name of a road. Except that no road - or place - of that name exists.

E. Ang Mo Kio GRC

Before GE2020: Six wards

1. Yio Chu Kang

2. Jalan Kayu

3. Cheng San-Seletar

4. Teck Ghee

5. Ang Mo Kio-Hougang

6. Sengkang South

After GE2020: Five wards

1. Jalan Kayu - A part of Ang Mo Kio town has been shifted to Cheng San-Seletar ward.

2. Cheng San-Seletar - Absorbed parts of Yio Chu Kang and Jalan Kayu wards.

3. Teck Ghee - Absorbed parts of Yio Chu Kang ward.

4. Ang Mo Kio-Hougang - Absorbed the southern half of Sengkang South ward.

5. Fernvale - Formed from parts of Jalan Kayu and Sengkang South wards, and part of Sengkang West SMC.

Yio Chu Kang ward has been carved out as an SMC; Sengkang South ward has been dissolved.

Trivia 1: Yio Chu Kang MRT Station and Nanyang Polytechnic were once part of Yio Chu Kang ward, but they remain in Ang Mo Kio GRC - now part of Cheng San-Seletar ward.

Trivia 2: Jalan Kayu ward is still in two parts; half of the road named Jalan Kayu is actually inside Fernvale ward.

Trivia 3: One of my favourite wards, Ang Mo Kio-Hougang, still exists. (“Favourite” because “Ang Mo Kio” and “Hougang” are so far apart.) While it is part of Ang Mo Kio GRC, the ward is so far east of Ang Mo Kio town, it covers Punggol Primary School and Punggol Park Community Centre (both formerly of Sengkang South ward).

F. Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC

Before GE2020: Five wards

1. Bishan North

2. Bishan East-Thomson

3. Toa Payoh West-Balestier

4. Toa Payoh Central

5. Toa Payoh East-Novena

After GE2020: Four wards

1. Bishan East-Sin Ming - Formed from the eastern half of Bishan East-Thomson ward, and part of Bishan North ward.

2. Toa Payoh West-Thomson - Formed from most of Toa Payoh West-Balestier ward, and part of Bishan East-Thomson ward.

3. Toa Payoh Central

4. Toa Payoh East - Formed from the northern half of Toa Payoh East-Novena ward, and part of Potong Pasir SMC.

Most of Bishan North ward has been carved out as Marymount SMC.

Trivia 1: Previously, Toa Payoh West-Balestier and Toa Payoh East-Novena were each in two parts; one part from each of the wards has been absorbed by Jalan Besar GRC’s Kampong Glam ward. Now, “Kampong Glam” reaches as far north as Balestier Road and Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

Trivia 2: Meanwhile, Bishan East-Sin Ming ward is in two parts.

G. Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC

Before GE2020: Six wards

1. Punggol Coast

2. Punggol West

3. Sengkang Central

4. Punggol North

5. Pasir Ris West

6. Pasir Ris East

After GE2020: Five wards

1. Punggol Coast - Absorbed part of Punggol West ward.

2. Punggol Shore - Previously Punggol North; now renamed.

3. Pasir Ris West

4. Pasir Ris Central - Carved out of parts of Pasir Ris West and Pasir Ris East.

5. Pasir Ris East

Most of Punggol West has been carved out as an SMC. Sengkang Central was carved out and included in Sengkang GRC; the ward has been split into Compassvale and Buangkok wards.

Trivia: There’s a seaside theme going on, with the place names “Punggol Coast” and “Punggol Shore”. At least “Punggol Coast” is also the name of an MRT station currently under construction in the ward - it’ll be the new northern terminus of the North East Line.

***

So there we have it - the geopolitical realities for many residents of Singapore for the next five years or so. Because of the mysterious manner in which ward boundaries are drawn and redrawn over time, we still have plenty of geopolitical oddities, such as Keat Hong covering most of the northwestern part of the island, Ayer Rajah-Gek Poh, Cheng San-Seletar, Ang Mo Kio-Hougang, Fernvale as part of Ang Mo Kio GRC, and Jalan Besar GRC’s Kampong Glam stretching north to Balestier. There are more in other GRCs I’ve not covered above, such as Aljunied GRC’s Bedok Reservoir-Punggol, East Coast GRC’s Siglap covering Changi, Pulau Ubin, and Pulau Tekong… the list goes on. The mismatch of geopolitical identities and municipal identities (where one HDB town or estate begins and ends) persists. Potential results: Bemusement, confusion, and a lack of rootedness in one’s community or neighbourhood. How to feel a deeper sense of connection when one is in two places at once, or when one isn’t even sure where exactly one is?

The Caravanserai

I recently came across this intriguing creation, a necessary offspring of the age-old need for intercontinental, yet plodding, transport: The Caravanserai.

From Wikipedia:

A caravanserai or caravansary was a roadside inn where travellers (caravaners) could rest and recover from the day’s journey. Caravanserais supported the flow of commerce, information and people across the network of trade routes covering Asia, North Africa and Southeast Europe, most notably the Silk Road. Although many were located along rural roads in the countryside, urban versions of caravanserais were also historically common in cities throughout the Islamic world, though they were often called by other names such as khan, wikala, or funduq.

The word کاروانسرای kārvānsarāy is a Persian compound word combining kārvān “caravan” with sarāy “palace”, “building with enclosed courts”. Here “caravan” means a group of traders, pilgrims or other travellers, engaged in long-distance travel. The word is also rendered as caravansary, caravansaray, caravanseray, caravansara, and caravansarai. In scholarly sources, it is often used as an umbrella term for multiple related types of commercial buildings similar to inns or hostels, whereas the actual instances of such buildings had a variety of names depending on the region and the local language. However, the term was typically preferred for rural inns built along roads outside of city walls.

Caravanserais were a common feature not only along the Silk Road, but also along the Achaemenid Empire’s Royal Road, a 2,500-kilometre-long ancient highway that stretched from Sardis to Susa according to Herodotus: “Now the true account of the road in question is the following: Royal stations exist along its whole length, and excellent caravanserais; and throughout, it traverses an inhabited tract, and is free from danger.” Other significant urban caravanserais were built along the Grand Trunk Road in the Indian subcontinent, especially in the region of Mughal Delhi and Bengal Subah.

A 17th-century caravanserai in southern Iran. Credit: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0.

A 16th-century caravanserai in Cairo, Egypt. Credit: Sailko, CC BY 3.0.

In the first few years after the founding of modern Singapore in 1819, development was concentrated in the southern part of the island, where the port town was located at the mouth of the Singapore River. However, from the 1820s, trunk roads began to be laid down from the port to eventually all corners of the island, complementing the agricultural development of the island’s interior. My book Jalan Singapura details this.

Back then, transport was rudimentary - people travelled on foot, or using horses, bullocks, and associated carts and carriages. Cross-Island travel would have been slow, taking hours. I can imagine government or municipal officials, such as surveyors, taking a good part of a day to travel from the Town to a far-flung corner which would now be Jurong, Woodlands, or Changi, spending the night there, and then returning to “civilisation” the following day.

Which is where my interest in Caravanserai comes in. I wonder whether such facilities were built in the early days of modern Singapore, in the 1820s and 1830s, when cross-island transport was still in its early legs. Was there a market for such a business? Did the authorities run such facilities instead? How were these buildings like? Who patronised them?

And the challenge for me, the historian - if they had existed, how do I go about finding them?

I will take on this challenge.

The word serai is sometimes used with the implication of caravanserai. A number of place-names based on the word sarai have grown up: Mughal Serai, Sarai Alamgir and the Delhi Sarai Rohilla railway station for example, and a great many other places are also based on the original meaning of “palace”.

Of course, the Singapore place name “Geylang Serai” immediately comes to mind. However, this time, the “Serai” in “Geylang Serai” is Malay for lemongrass, which used to be grown in the area. I am not aware of any other place name in Singapore with “Serai” in it. That said, I am very happy to be proven wrong!