Little India, Singapore

Little India
Subzone of Rochor Planning Area
Singapore
Other transcription(s)
 • Chinese小印度
Xiǎo Yìndù (Pinyin)
Sió Ìn-tō͘ (Hokkien POJ)
 • MalayLittle India
 • Tamilசிறிய இந்தியா
Siṟiya intiyā (Transliteration)
Shophouses in Little India
Little India
Location of Little India within Singapore
Coordinates: 1°18′23″N 103°51′06″E / 1.3065°N 103.8518°E / 1.3065; 103.8518
CountrySingapore

Little India (Tamil: லிட்டில் இந்தியா) is an ethnic enclave in Singapore located east of the Singapore River, across from Chinatown, and north of Kampong Glam.[1] Little India is commonly known as Tekka among the Indian Singaporean community.[2] The precinct is notable for its markets, including the Tekka Market, and the festivals it hosts throughout the year, such as Deepavali and Thaipusam.[3]

History

Little India was initially a district used by Europeans for cattle trading, where Indian migrant workers found jobs, specializing in cattle rearing.[4] Its location along the Serangoon River provided good conditions for raising livestock, resulting in the growth of that industry.[5][6] Eventually, the swamps were drained, and the European cattle farmers and traders moved out. Many of the cattle rearing migrant workers stayed, and the neighborhood became predominantly inhabited by South Asians, namely people of Indian descent. The Tamil Muslims, also known as Chulias, were among the earliest groups of Indian traders who arrived, engaging in commerce and various occupations, including infrastructure construction and serving in colonial positions.[3]

Little India was officially gazetted as a conservation area on 7 July 1989, with subsequent conservation of additional buildings along Desker Road, Syed Alwi Road, and Jalan Besar occurring over the following decades.[7][8][9]

2013 Little India riot

Main article: 2013 Little India riot

On 8 December 2013, a fatal accident occurred at SST 21:23 at the junction of Race Course Road and Hampshire Road. Sakthivel Kumarvelu, a 33-year-old Indian construction worker, was run over by a private bus, which was to transport migrant workers to their dormitories, and was killed.[10] While emergency vehicles arrived at the accident, the migrant workers started a riot over the accident. Twenty-five emergency vehicles were damaged in the riots, alongside five that were set on fire.[11] Video footage uploaded on the Internet shows rioters pushing police cars on their sides and setting an ambulance on fire.[12][13] 39 police, four civil defence and auxiliary officers were injured.[11]

There were an estimated 300 rioters[14][15] while the Singapore Police Force dispatched 300 riot police.[14] 27 arrests were made in relation to the riots[16][15] where 24 were migrant labourers from India.[17][18][19] Nine more labourers from Tamil Nadu were also arrested for their involvement in the riot with a total 33 workers who were eventually charged.[20][21][22] In addition, 53 workers were deported for offences ranging from obstructing the police to failing to follow police orders to disperse,[23] while 200 workers received formal advisories to obey the law.[24]

The riot eventually led to the implementation of a new law, the Liquor Control (Supply and Consumption) Act in 2015 banning consumption of alcohol in all public places from 10:30 pm to 7 am. This also included banning the sales of alcohol products such as Rum and Raisin ice cream[25] between the time periods,[26] which was lifted in 2019.[27][28]

Culture

Under the Singapore government's policy of racial integration, Little India is deemed as a historical landmark. Many Indian businesses and cottage industries remain concentrated in Little India for the purpose of preserving cultural heritage. However, Little India is not the only zone in Singapore with a significant South Asian population, and Indian-dominant commercial zones can also be found in various Housing and Development Board estates.[29][30]

Little India is also home to Chinese Clan Associations, places of worship for various religions, and a range of businesses, including those selling electrical supplies, hardware, second-hand goods, and traditional items such as spice grinders and groceries.[31]

Amenities

Along Serangoon Road are the Tekka Centre, the Tekka Mall, the Little India Arcade, Serangoon Plaza, and the Mustafa Centre (on a side road). Farrer Park Fields is located in the district.

Little India is also home to several art houses. In 1985, the National Arts Council launched the Arts Housing Scheme, aimed at identifying and renovating old buildings for arts and cultural activities. A line of shophouses along Kerbau Road were designated for the project, and the area is currently known as the Little India Arts Belt. As of 2011, there are seven arts organizations in the Belt. Three are contemporary theatre companies, while the other organizations involve traditional arts such as Malay dance and Indian theatre.[32]

Places of worship

Churches

Temples

Hindu temples

Mosques

Notable places

  • House of Tan Teng Niah
  • Sri Veerakaliamman Temple
  • Indian Heritage Centre
  • Srinivasa Perumal Temple
  • Indian Heritage Centre
  • Masjid Abdul Gaffoor
  • Little India Arcade
  • Tekka Centre
  • Jothi Store And Flower Shop
  • Mustafa Jewellery

Transport

Serangoon Road is the main commercial thoroughfare in Little India. It intersects Rochor Canal Road and Bukit Timah Sungei Road.

The area is served by the MRT on the North East line (at Little India and Farrer Park) and Downtown line (at Rochor and Jalan Besar). Bus services 23, 64, 65, 67, 131, 139, 147, and 857 pass through Little India via Serangoon Road.

See also

References

  1. ^ IndianDiaspora.org. "Little India of Singapore | Indian Diaspora". www.indiandiaspora.org. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  2. ^ "Conservation Portal -". www.ura.gov.sg. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Indian Heritage Centre: From Pioneers To Present-Day - Little Day Out". 2 July 2025. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  4. ^ Singapore, National Library Board. "Little India". www.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  5. ^ Carl-Bernd Kaehlig; Swee Lin Khong (2008). Sari, Sarong and Shorts: Singapore's Kampong Glam & Little India. SNP Editions. p. 13. ISBN 978-981-248-178-8.
  6. ^ Sharon Siddique; Nirmala Purushotam (1982). Singapore's Little India, Past, Present, and Future. Vol. 3. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp. 10, 58. ISBN 978-9971-902-31-5.
  7. ^ "Conservation Portal -". www.ura.gov.sg. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Indian Heritage Centre - Discover Little India". www.indianheritage.gov.sg. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  9. ^ "Building a Multicultural Singapore". www.sg101.gov.sg.
  10. ^ Torrijos, Elena (8 December 2013). "Deceased foreign worker in Little India riot tripped and fell after being ejected from bus: Police". Yahoo News. Archived from the original on 15 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  11. ^ a b Torrijos, Elena (8 December 2013). "Deceased foreign worker in Little India riot tripped and fell after being ejected from bus: Police". Yahoo News. Archived from the original on 15 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  12. ^ Brown, Sophie (9 December 2013). "Dozens arrested in Singapore after foreign worker's death sparks riot". CNN. Archived from the original on 9 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  13. ^ Neo, Chai Chin; Chia, Ashley (9 December 2013). "Little India riot: 200 injured, 27 arrested". Today. Archived from the original on 10 December 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  14. ^ a b Nghiem, Ashleigh (9 December 2013). "Singapore bus death triggers riot". BBC News. Archived from the original on 8 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  15. ^ a b Grant, Jeremy (8 December 2013). "Riot tarnishes Singapore's image as place of ethnic harmony". Financial Times. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  16. ^ "Migrant labor activists suspect pent-up rage exploded in Singapore riot". The Standard. Hong Kong. 9 December 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  17. ^ Sim, Walter; Lim, Joyce; Cheong, Kash (9 December 2013). "Little India Riot: 27 suspects from South Asia arrested in connection with the riot". The Straits Times. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  18. ^ "Little India Riot: Singapore PR among 27 arrested: police". The Straits Times. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  19. ^ "Singapore to charge 24 people for rioting – Australia Network News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 10 December 2013. Archived from the original on 10 December 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  20. ^ See, Sharon (11 December 2013). "3 more charged with rioting at Little India". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
  21. ^ Singh, Khushwant (12 December 2013). "Little India Riot: Four more Indian nationals charged, remanded for further investigations". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  22. ^ "Little India Riot: Two more Indian nationals charged in court". The Straits Times. 14 December 2013. Archived from the original on 17 December 2013. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  23. ^ "Little India Riot: Police hold press conference on repatriation of workers involved in riot". The Straits Times. 20 December 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  24. ^ Lee, Pearl (22 December 2013). "Little India riot: 200 foreign workers receive police advisories". The Straits Times. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  25. ^ "Apparently, Cheers doesn't sell Rum Rum Raisin ice cream at night due to alcohol curfew – Coconuts Singapore". coconuts.co. Archived from the original on 12 July 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  26. ^ Han, Lim Yi (1 April 2015). "What you can or cannot do under the new alcohol law". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  27. ^ "Update on MHA's Review Of Exemption of Food Products Containing Alcohol". MHA. 17 January 2019. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  28. ^ Goh, Timothy (17 January 2019). "Food products with alcohol can be sold after 10.30pm as MHA lifts restrictions from Jan 18". The Straits Times. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  29. ^ Eng, Teo Siew; Savage, Victor R. (1985). "SINGAPORE LANDSCAPE: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF HOUSING CHANGE". Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography. 6 (1): 48. doi:10.1111/J.1467-9493.1985.TB00160.X. ISSN 0129-7619.
  30. ^ "Language Shift in the Tamil Communities of Malaysia and Singapore: the Paradox of Egalitarian Language Policy". ccat.sas.upenn.edu. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  31. ^ Henderson, Joan C. (June 2008). "Managing Urban Ethnic Heritage: Little India in Singapore". International Journal of Heritage Studies. 14 (4): 332–346. doi:10.1080/13527250802155851. ISSN 1352-7258.
  32. ^ TC, Chang (18 March 2014). "'New uses need old buildings': Gentrification aesthetics and the arts in Singapore". Urban Studies. 53 (3): 524–539. doi:10.1177/0042098014527482. S2CID 145702075. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  33. ^ "Sakya Muni Buddha Gaya Temple". Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  34. ^ "Leong San See Temple". Retrieved 31 August 2023.
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