http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batu_Pahat_(city)
Batu Pahat (also known as Bandar Penggaram 峇株巴辖) is a city and a district located on the west coast of the state of Johor, Malaysia. It lies south-east of Muar, south-west of Kluang, north-west of Pontian and south of Segamat.As year 2008,Batu Pahat is 12th largest city in Malaysia in term of population.Since year 2006,Batu Pahat city successfully surpass Muar town to become second largest city in Johor state.
[edit] Geography
Batu Pahat is located at 1°51′N, 102°56′E. It is 239 km from Kuala Lumpur. Next nearest town is Muar which is 50 km northwest of Batu Pahat. The town of Kluang is located about 52 km to the southeast. Johor Bahru is located about 130 km to the south east of the town. The district itself borders the district of Segamat to the north, Kluang to the east, Muar to the west and shares a border in the southeast with the district of Pontian. The coast of the Straits of Melaka lies to the south.
[edit] Origin
The name Batu Pahat means 'chiseled rock' in Malay. The origin of this name can be traced back to a legend in the 15th century; when the invading Siamese troops were chiselling rocks at a rocky spot in the coastal village of Kampung Minyak Beku, in hope to get fresh water during their retreat. They were being chased by the Melaka troops, being led by Tun Perak, the famous Bendahara (Prime Minister) of the Malacca Empire. In fact, in around 1456, the Siamese army was led by Admiral Awi Di Chu camped in Batu Pahat before attacking Malacca [1]. Another story goes like this - after capturing Melaka, the Portuguese built a fortress - "A Famosa" of granite rocks taken from the mouth of Sungei Batu Pahat. The town acquired its name, which means "chiselled stone" from the quarries near the estuary[2]. Renowned for its salted fish in the past, Batu Pahat was formerly known as Bandar Penggaram, which means town of salt-makers. In 1893, the present township was founded by Dato Bentara Luar, Mohamed Salleh bin Perang, acting on the orders of the Sultan of Johor, Sultan Abu Bakar [3]. Today, the ancient well can still be found in Minyak Beku, though little was done to maintain this ancient landmark which gives name to the town. For the town's centennial celebration in the early 90's, a quaint monument depicting a 'floating hand chiselling a rock' was set up in the town square. It became the landmark of the town instantaneously. Currently, the newly refurbished town square is popular with locals to chill out on weekend nights and also provides as a venue for many public festive celebrations.
[edit] Subdivisions and administration
The district (daerah) is further divided into mukim-mukim (pl.) or subdistricts. The subdistricts are designated with a number (Mukim 1 till 12,17 and 18):
1. Lubok (Mukim I)
2. Bagan (Mukim II)
3. Peserai (Mukim III)
4. Simpang Kiri (Mukim IV)
5. Simpang Kanan (Mukim V)
6. Linau (Mukim VI)
7. Tanjung Semberong (Mukim VII)
8. Sri Gading (Mukim VIII)
9. Minyak Beku (Mukim IX)
10. Kampung Bahru (Mukim X)
11. Sungai Punggor (Mukim XI)
12. Sungai Kluang (Mukim XII)
13. Chaah Bahru (Mukim XVII)
14. Sri Medan (Mukim XVIII)
Batu Pahat is administered by Majlis Perbandaran Batu Pahat,MPBP 峇株巴辖市议会 or Batu Pahat Municipal Council which was upgraded from the previous District Council (Majlis Daerah Batu Pahat Barat,MDBPB).
Batu Pahat district has 525 gazetted villages (kampung-kampung pl.) and village-clusters (kampung rangkaian) where smaller villages were annexed to their bigger immediate neighbours for the purpose of administration. The villages are represented by Ketua-Ketua Kampung (village heads), answering to the Penghulu (subdistrict chief) administering the mukim. The mukim itself however is under the jurisdiction of the District Officer or Pegawai Daerah. The district office of Batu Pahat also have five district engineers (Jurutera Daerah) to oversee all the subdistricts.
Growth in small and medium industries such as textiles, garments and electronics helped to boost development, and Batu Pahat was upgraded to town status (Majlis Perbandaran) in 2001, alongside Muar, Kluang and Skudai.
As of 2008, the government does not have any plans to upgrade Batu Pahat to a city status (Majlis Bandaraya) although the development of Batu Pahat is surpass Alor Star and Kuala Terengganu which both had already achieve the city status.
[edit] Demographics
The city of Batu Pahat has a population of more than 200,000 local residents. There are about 59,587 households with 468,058 population in this district. The most populated mukim is Simpang Kanan with more than 180,000 people and the least populated is Bagan with a population of only 4,692.
Overall district-wide population distribution based on gender are almost equal with a male population of 169,087 and female population of 166,281. [4]
Batu Pahat city has roughly 49% of Bumiputera (mainly Malays), 46% of Chinese, and 3% of Indians and others very minor races.
Batu Pahat Chinese people are usually use mandarin as their main communication language due to the influence by Singapore Broadcast Television,Mediacorp 新传媒.For dialect speaking,many of Batu Pahat people can speak Hokkien but difference with the Hokkien speaking in Penang.
[edit] Economy
Batu Pahat has Johor's second largest manufacturing industrial city; encompassing textiles, electronics, food-processing, timber, porcelain and plastic industry. It produces 50% of the textile exported from Malaysia and there are about 300 garment and textile factories.
There are several industrial zones including Tongkang Pecah, Parit Raja and Sri Gading. Private industrial zones include Sri Sulong, Lian Aik and Buditama, ranging from 20 acres (81,000 m2) to 200 acres (0.81 km2). Foreign investments include Sharp Roxy, Sony, Fujitsu , Hitachi and Mitsumi. There over 20 public listed companies, including: Harta Packaging, PCCS, Baneng Holdings, S&P, Sharp Roxy, Ramatex, Southex, Prolexus, Fujitsu, Hitachi , Yong Tai, Hwa Tai, AE, Kia Lim, Kayu Wangi, Hup Seng, Xiang Leng 祥龙, Magnum, SKP, SPI Plastics, BP Plastics, Cheng Yap Sdn. Bhd.and Fast Track Solutions Bhd.
[edit] Education
Educational institutions in Batu Pahat encompass primary to tertiary education. There are 101 national primary schools whose medium of instruction is Malay language and 38 Chinese primary schools. In Batu Pahat, there are 24 national secondary schools, 3 independent Chinese secondary schools and a vocational school. Among some of the secondary schools in Batu Pahat are:
• SMK Tinggi Batu Pahat 高级中学 (High School Batu Pahat, HSBP)
• The Chinese High School (华仁中学)
• SMK Convent
• SMK Dato Syed Esa (formerly called SMK Jalan Kolam Air)
• SMK Temenggong Ibrahim (Temenggong Ibrahim Girl's School)
• SMK Munshi Sulaiman
• SMK Dato Bentara Luar
• [SMK Datin Onn Jaafar] [1]
• SMK Tun Aminah
• SM Teknik
For tertiary education, there are 2 polytechnics, 1 university ([Tun Hussein Onn University of Malaysia][2], UTHM) and 1 teachers' training college.
Agriculture is another important source of income for the locals. Batu Pahat has some of the largest rubber, oil palm, coconut and cocoa plantations in Johor. Fruit produce such as water-melons, papayas, bananas, pineapples and durians and 20 varieties of vegetables are being exported. Besides, there are several fishing villages near the Straits of Malacca, providing rich sources of fisheries. Ornamental fishes such as the Arowana are some of the major export from some companies such as Xiang Leng.
[edit] Transport
Batu Pahat is served by land transport, both locally and intercity. A new ferry terminal is located at Minyak Beku servicing Indonesia port of Tanjung Balai, Bangkalis and Batam
[edit] A celebration at Dataran Penggram
Batu Pahat is the home of Puteri Gunung Banang which is the family member of the traditional fable Puteri Gunung Ledang [5]. The first Malay dragon dance (Chinese culture) troop in Malaya was formed by Dato' Bentara Luar Mohd.Salleh Perang in Batu Pahat, only to have its final public performance in 1955, when cultural exchange gave way to racial politics. [6]
The place of Parit Sulong Massacre (The Bridge of Pekan Parit Sulong) was situated in this district. It is located in Mukim Simpang Kiri at Pekan Parit Sulong. The original bridge has now been demolished and it was replaced by new bridge, the plaque of the massacre exists until today. There used to be a Batu Pahat Bank. However, in 1963 OCBC created Pacific Bank to acquire 97% of Batu Pahat Bank. Singaporean businessmen incorporated the OCBC bank in 1919 to serve the needs of the local Chinese community. At the time Batu Pahat in Johore was a center for the production of rubber. OCBC bought the bank in anticipation of the union between Malaya and Singapore [7]. Until the 80's, both OCBC and Pacific banks were still located, face to face at the junction of Jalan Soga and Jalan Rahmat. On the 1st of January 2001, Pacific Bank Berhad merged with MayBank Berhad and PhileoAllied Bank Berhad after Malaysian Government directive. On the 16th of October 1980, Batu Pahat police killed 8 members of a sword-wielding mob led by a Cambodian refugee-cum-cult leader, Ahmad Nasir Ismail, who claimed to be Imam Mahadi, a sort of messiah. They had stormed the police headquarter in Batu Pahat, injuring 14 policemen and 9 civilians. The self-styled Mahadi was among those killed. Batu Pahat celebrated its 100th year of foundation in 1994. The delayed celebration was held in the city area with street cultural performances at night and ended with a firework display near the Dataran (city square). The outskirts of Batu Pahat were severely affected by the Typhoon Utor associated floods not only once, but twice in a span of a month from December 2006 to January 2007 (2006-2007 Malaysian floods). Affected areas include Senggarang, Sr Gading, Parit Yanni, Parit Ahmad and Parit Besar.
[edit] Nature and Wildlife
Batu Pahat is a sanctuary for the endangered Lesser Adjutant Stork (Leptoptilos javanicus). Known locally as burung botak or bald bird, this migratory bird belongs to the ciconidae family. The current population in Peninsular Malaysia is estimated to be less than 250. These giant birds, which can be as tall as a man, have attracted many curious residents and nature lovers to Taman Parit Labis in the evenings for bird-watching sessions. The housing estate, which is sandwiched between a rapidly developing town and the fringe of a secondary forest, has now become the best viewing spot for the bird [8].
[edit] Local Attraction
The Batu Pahat city square was renovated in the 1990s on the occasion of the city's centennial celebration. Sitting right in the middle of the square is the landmark, which depicts a floating hand chiselling a rock, is popular among locals to chill out at night. Common activities in the square such as children playing with balloon, remote-control cars and kite-flying can be seen during weekend nights. Surrounding the square are some old government offices. A recreational lake, named Tasik Y, is a favourite place for morning walk and exercise for the townfolks. There are also BP Walk located at Jalan Rahmat which is also a famous place for townfolks.Chinese food paradises also have in Batu Pahat town,for example in Jalan Pengkai(in mandarin:贪吃街),Jalan Shahbandar(in hokien:海墘街).The popular food in Batu Pahat are osyter fried 蚝煎,fish ball noodles 鱼圆面,pork meat noodles 肉碎面,wan tan noodles 云吞面,(in mandarin:五香),pork meat Satey and many more!
Batu Pahat is famous for its local delicacies and textile industry. Once regarded as the 'Little Paris' of Malaysia, Batu Pahat was famed for its 'red-light town' reputation in the 1960s - 1970's. However, there are only 1-2 bars of such kind left in town now like Tiong Ah Bar, the oldest bar in town.
[edit] Shopping
Batu Pahat city is one shopping paradise which offers more value for your money, compared to other cities in Malaysia due to its lower cost of living.
- The Summit[9] 高峰百利广场
- A shopping complex, established in 1996, is popular among townfolks and also attracting Singaporean tourists for a stop-over shopping day tour on the weekends.Batu Pahat city 1rd cinema company,GSC cinema is operated inside the shopping mall.Now the management of The Summit plan to build a 10 storey new wing for this shopping mall to complete with others new shopping mall which they set their business rapidly through out this 2 years.
- Carrefour 家乐福霸级市场
- In September 2006, the French retail giant Carrefour invested a total of RM90 million to set up its latest chain of hypermarkets in Taman Flora Utama. This is the second Carrefour to be built in Johore, and the tenth in Malaysia.
- The Taman Flora Utama township grown rapidly and a new shopping mall,Square One is just beside Carrefour will be opened in coming December 2008.Batu Pahat city 3rd cinema company,2nd cineplex (biggest in Batu Pahat),MBO cinemaplex will operate inside the shopping mall.There are 8 theater in the cineplex!
- Inside Square One Shopping Mall.
- One Stop
- Located at Jalan Rahmat,Jalan Jenang and Taman Bukit Pasir.
- A Batu Pahat first McDonald Drive Thru Restaurant was opened in 1 December 2008.
- Batu Pahat Mall 峇株巴辖广场
- In January 2007, Batu Pahat Mall, a new hypermarket retail development, opened along the now burgeoning Jalan Kluang. This raised the profile of the surrounding area from a once squalid area of workshops, textile and apparel manufacturing to that of a commercial and retail area 4km away from the city centre.Batu Pahat city 2rd cinema company,1nd cinemaplex,Big Box cineplex is operated inside the shopping mall since December 2008.There are 7 theater in the cineplex!
- The Store Supermarket 环球百货购物中心
- Located at Jalan Rugayah and in The Summit.
- Pacific Hypermarket 太平洋霸级市场
- Located in Batu Pahat Mall.
- Farson Supermarket 发盛百货购物中心
- Located at Jalan Rugayah.
- Jusco (proposed)
- Tesco (proposed)
- Besides, local "pasar malam" or night markets are held in residential area with petty traders setting up stalls, selling all sorts of food and daily necessities with very cheap prices. These night markets are held every night in different places with a rotation schedule of a week.
| Day | Location |
|---|---|
| Sunday | Taman Nira 尼拉花园 |
| Monday | Taman Bukit Pasir 白沙孚花园 |
| Tuesday | Taman Soga 苏雅花园 |
| Wednesday | Taman Bukit Perdana 龙华山庄 |
| Thursday | Jalan Omar (former Bus Stand) |
| Friday | Taman Sri Jaya |
| Saturday | Kampung Kenangan Dato Onn |
- In the older part of the city, Jalan Penggaram is a street specializing in garment trading and goldsmiths. These are old but still functional and well-maintained shop houses that remind Batu Pahat of its colonial past. Local Chinese prefer to call it "Hakka Street", probably due to the dominant Hakka population managing the garment stores."Japan Street" is Jalan Ismail also located at older part of city.
[edit] Hospital/Medicare Centre
There are government owned and private owned hospital and medicare centre.
1. Hospital Batu Pahat (at Jalan Korma,Taman Soga)
2. Putra Specialist Hospital 布特拉专科私人医院 (at Jalan Peserai)
3. Pantai Specialist Hospital 班台专科私人医院 (at Taman Koperasi Bahagia)
4. Klinik Kesihatan Batu Pahat (at Jalan Kluang,but because of renovation,temperately at Taman Flora Utama)
[edit] Roads
- Jalan Rahmat [大马路]
- Batu Pahat first main road,mainly Finances and banks road. Normally quite busy since 10 am until 4 pm, during banking hours. Banks and finances located along the road are 2 Maybank, 2 CIMB Bank,Am Bank, HSBC Bank,Bank Islam, Am Bank Insurance and Great Eastern Insurance which is 5-floors office.Post Office also located along the road. "BP Walk" also situated along the road.
- Jalan Sultanah [二马路]
- Batu Pahat second main road. Hong Leong bank,OSK Investment office also located along the road.
- Jalan Fatimah
- Carnival hotel located along the road.
- Jalan Ismail [日本街]
- Road formerly occupied by Japanese during World War 2.
- Jalan Jenang
- Jalan Idris [打铁街]
- Road formerly mainly on iron and steel business.
- Jalan Penggaram [布店街]
- Road mainly on selling clothes.Also named "Hakka Street" because of the road dominant Hakka population managing the garment stores especially clothing shops.
- Jalan Soga
- Jalan Rugayah
- The Store supermarket,Farson supermarket,Bank Simpanan Nasional,Toyota Car Service Centre and Pelican Hotel are located along the road.
- Jalan Ibrahim
- The everyday Pasar Pagi along the upper part of the road,which local authority government, MPBP had made a roof along this upper part of the road.
- Jalan Engan
- Jalan Pasar
- Batu Pahat main and historical wet market located here.
- Jalan Syahbandar [海墘街]
- Jalan Temenggung
- Jalan Abu Bakar
- 15 floor Bus Station located at this road.
- Jalan Peng Kai [贪吃街]
- Road with selling all Batu Pahat local famous food.
- Jalan Mohd Akil
- Jalan Mohd Salleh
- File:Jkr-ftJ17.png Jalan Ampuan
- The trunk road from city centre to Taman Soga,Taman Dagang,Taman Soga 2,Taman Pantai,Taman Pantai Baru,Taman Ampuan,Taman Joseph,Taman Sri Pantai,Taman Ampang Jaya,Taman Banang Height,Taman Banang Ria,Jabatan Kastam,Minyak Beku and Perigi Batu Pahat.
- Jalan Masjid
- Jalan Puteri
- Jalan Mohd Khalid
- Where SJK(C) Ai Chun (1)&(2) and old Bomba situated.
- Jalan Zaharah
- The main road to SMK Tinggi Batu Pahat (High School Batu Pahat,HSBP),Hospital Batu Pahat,Pejabat Pendidikan Daerah Batu Pahat (PPD) and Taman Soga.
- Jalan Pejabat
- Many of Batu Pahat government office located here for example Pejabat Majlis Perbandaran Batu Pahat,JKR Batu Pahat,Majistret Court,and others.
- Jalan Zabedah
- The Batu Pahat most famous hotel, Katerinal hotel, Crystal Inn hotel, Noval hotel and Batu Pahat most famous and largest restaurant, Sea View Restaurant all are located along the road. The peak hour of the road is between 9 pm until 11 pm everyday and 11 am until 11 pm every weekend due to the road nearby The Summit and Sea View Restaurant.
Jalan Bakau Condong
- Where The Summit located here, main trunk road from Jalan Peserai(to Muar) to T-junction Jalan Kluang.
- Where Taman Bukit Pasir township located here, main trunk road from city centre to Tongkang Pecah and Yong Peng, also mainly industrial area in Tongkang Pecah. Wet World Batu Pahat also located at Bukit Pasir,place who quite a lot tourism like to visit.
Jalan Kluang
- Where Batu Pahat Mall located here,main trunk road from city centre round-about to Maktab Perguruan Hussein Onn,Jambatan Pengangkutan Jalanraya (JPJ)Sri Gading,new township Pura Kencana,Universiti Tun Hussein Onn (UTHM),Parit Raja,Ayer Hitam, PLUS toll,Kluang and even Mersing.Due to many factory and Batu Pahat Mall is situated along the road,the road is always facing traffic jam problem,especially the part after masjid jamek until Kampung Istana.
- Jalan Tanjung Labuh
- Main trunk road from city centre to Taman Banang,Banang Club Golf,Senggarang,Rengit and even Pontian Kecil.Batu Pahat most famous primary school,SJK(C) Cheng Siu (1)&(2) is also located along the road.The peak hour of the road are usually every weekday because of 3 primary school and 1 private secondary school is located along the road.
- Jalan Tan Swee Hoe [陈瑞和路]
- Main trunk road between Jalan Bukit Pasir and Jalan Kluang,which formed a H-shape.A lot of residential area and new township,Taman Flora Utama and Taman Setia Jaya 2 are located along the way.Carrefour Hypermarket,McDonald Drive Thru,Square One Shopping Mall,Taman Setia Jaya 2 and Taman Flora Utama all located along the way.Convent Girl's primary and secondary school also situated along this road.So,the peak hour of the road is 6.30am until 8am,10pm until 8pm every weekday and 10am until 10pm every weekend and public holiday.
[edit] Layout of Batu Pahat City
North zone in Batu Pahat city:
- Taman Peserai
- Peserai
- Kampung Muhibbah
- Simpang Lima
- Parit Besar (Bagan) 峇眼
- Semerah
South zone in Batu Pahat city:
- Taman Kemajuan
- Taman Mewah 美华花园
- Taman Kenanangan
- Taman Bahagia
- Taman Bukit Mutiara 伏龙山庄
- Taman Bukit Mutiara 2 伏龙山庄二
- Taman Flora Height 梅花高原
- Taman Bandar
- Taman Bukit Banang
- Ayam Suloh
- Senggarang
- Rengit
Center Zone in Batu Pahat city:
- Taman Pegawai
- Kampung Merdeka 周来村 (in Hokkien:Jiu1 Lai1)
- Taman Limpoon 林份花园
- Taman Dato Abdul Rahman
- Taman Batu Pahat 峇株巴辖花园
- Taman Sejahtera
- Taman Damai
- Taman Damai 2
- Taman Emas
- Taman Emas 2 万豪苑
- Taman Bukit Perdana 龙华山庄
- Taman Bukit Perdana 2 龙华山庄二
- Taman Perdana 红山
- Taman Inang
- Batu Pahat city centre 峇株巴辖市中心
East Zone in Batu Pahat city:
- Taman Banang
- Taman Bukit Pasir
- Taman Setia Jaya 金宝花园
- Taman Setia Jaya 2 金宝二镇
- Taman Maju 进步花园
- Taman Tasek
- Taman Puteri
- Taman Puteri Indah
- Taman Flora Utama 富贵城
- Taman Koperasi Bahagia 幸福合作社
- Taman Flora 梅花岭
- Parit Besar 大巴力 (in Hokkien:Du-a3 Ba1 Lik4)
- Taman Pelangi
- Taman Berlian 健家园
- Taman Gembira
- Kampung Istana 三春村 (in Hokkien:Sam1 Chun1)
- Hill View Apartment 翠林轩
- Taman Budaya
- Taman Sentosa 圣陶沙花园
- Pura Kencana,Sri Gading
- Sri Gading
- Bandar Universiti,Parit Raja
- Universiti Tun Hussien Onn Malaysia,UTHM
- Parit Raja
West Zone in Batu Pahat city:
- Taman Banang Ria
- Banang Height
- Taman Ampang Jaya
- Taman Ampuan 安邦花园
- Taman Joseph
- Taman Sri Pantai 金宝苑
- Taman Pantai 班底花园
- Taman Pantai Baru 新班底花园
- Taman Masjid Tanah
- Taman Dagang
- Taman Zamrud
- Taman Soga 苏雅花园
- Taman Soga 2
- Kampung Satey
- Kampung Petani
- Sungai Suloh
- Kampung Minyak Beku
- Perigi Batu Pahat
[edit] Religious Activities
A unique Chinese temple located at Bukit Pasir - "Jian Nan Temple" There are 2 majestic mosques in Batu Pahat - Masjid Jamek and Masjid Batu Pahat. Batu Pahat also has over 40 Chinese temples, a reflection of it racial harmony. Very often, we can see busloads of Singapore tourists visiting these temples and this has become part of the income for the locals. There is a strong belief that good luck is bestowed on the prayers and they do come back very often. Some of these temples are beautifully renovated and thus have also become a tourist attraction.
Jason....good one,keep it up
ReplyDeleteThanks for ur praise!!!!
ReplyDeleteI ll continue to update Batu Pahat info as much as I can...
Nice info
ReplyDelete