Chong Pang

Chong Pang is a housing estate located in the subzone of Yishun West along the Sembawang–Yishun boundary in the town of Yishun, Singapore. It was named after the former Chong Pang village. It has precincts of Neighbourhood 1, part of Neighbourhood 7 and private residential areas along Sembawang Road.

History

Chong Pang Village

Chong Pang was the name of a former village which was located in the north of Singapore, near the site of the present day Sembawang MRT Station.^[1]

Prior to 1956, Chong Pang Village was originally known as Westhill Village (or Westhill estate). Part of Nee Soon Estate, the village was situated at the twelfth milestone at Seletar, opposite the Sembawang Aerodrome. During the late 1930s and early 1940s, the village had the highest concentration of Indians in Singapore, many of whom were employees of the British Naval Base just outside the village. The land was owned by Lim Chong Pang (Chinese: 林忠邦; pinyin: Lín Zhōng Bāng), son of Lim Nee Soon, who drew up small plots of land and leased them at a cheap rate of 50 cents per month. It was settled by rubber tappers (who otherwise had to cycle a long way) and vegetable farm workers. Although the rents were cheap, the number of families did not exceed 100 during the 1930s and 1940s.^[2] About 60 percent of the population were Indians. The rest were Chinese planters, rubber tappers and hawkers, along with a handful of Malay fishermen.

In 1956 it was renamed as Chong Pang village in honour of Lim Chong Pang for his public service to Singapore.^[3] During the late 1960s, there were more than 100 families residing village. Many of these consisted of Indian bachelor employees from the nearby Singapore Naval Base in Sembawang, who returned with their brides from India. The 1971 British withdrawal from Singapore and the subsequent retrenchment led to many residents being left jobless. The Indians were particularly affected and most of them returned to India leading to a dwindling Indian community. Since then, the village had a predominantly Chinese population with small communities of Indians and Malays.

Present Day

The present day housing estate named Chong Pang is located in Yishun.

Politics

Chong Pang lends its name to a ward in Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (formerly Sembawang Group Representation Constituency until 2011). The MP of the Chong Pang ward is Mr K Shanmugam.

References

1. "Chong Pang City". National Heritage Board. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
2. Tang, Ronnie (1 February 1985). "Next change at village". The Straits Times. p. 21. Retrieved 24 March 2015 – via NewspaperSG.
3. "Chong Pang Village". The Straits Times. 18 July 1957. p. 5. Retrieved 23 March 2016 – via NewspaperSG.