UTAR NEW VILLAGE COMMUNITY PROJECT

REPORT

NAME OF VILLAGE:

AYER KALA 爱育加拉

PERAK

Project carried out by:

Student Name

ID Number

Course

Year/ Trimester

1. Cheng Ri Jin 1101791 Bachelor of

Biomedical Science Y3/T3

2. Chew Choo Choo 1102044 Bachelor of

Biomedical Science Y3/T3

DATE OF COMPLETION:

MAY 2014

AYER KALA

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ABSTRACT

Ayer Kala (爱育嘉拉）is a small village with 2,000 people in the district of

Lenggong in Perak state, Malaysia. It is one of the Chinese New Villages

established by the British Government under Briggs Plan situated 75 km north of

Ipoh town. The majority of villagers are Chinese and other ethnic groups form a

small majority. Economic activities are limited and most of the residents are

involved in agriculture e.g. rubber and oil palm smallholdings, and lime, durian

and banana orchards. This area attracts tourists, many of whom visit the Buddhist

temple, Wat Luang Poh Tuad Ayer Kala, or the well known local restaurant, the

Xin Jiang Restaurant.

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HISTORY

Briggs plan was proposed by British General Sir Harold Briggs to separate

500,000 Malayan peasantry (mainly the rural Chinese) and house them in guarded

camps with the aim of defeating the early Malayan Races Liberation Army

insurgents. These insurgents were under the control of the Malayan Communist

Party. Kampung Ayer Kala was one of the many Chinese New Villages created in

the mid-1950s.

The forced resettlement put the villagers in a rather hopeless situation as there was

no transportation system in the settlement area. Locals were forced to carry and

deliver the goods manually. To make things worse, timber and metal sheets

available to build houses were rather scarce. Local Chinese associations at that

period of time, gave a helping hand by giving out ten pieces of zinc metal sheets

and 75 dollars in cash for 75 families. Despite the assistance given by the

association, most villagers lived a tough life.

By the end of the year 1951, the British Government had built a few local

amenities such as public toilets, a sub-district office and dormitories and a civic

center (made up of nipa palm leaves). The civic center was later used as a

temporary classroom for the children of the villagers.

There was no water and electricity supply in the village. A mini-sized electric

generator was used to provide lighting for the local security which was fighting

the Malayan Races Liberation Army insurgents into the village. Six security

towers had been set up to closely observe the daily activities of the villagers.

Curfew started at 6 pm every day and it villagers were forbidden to bring food or

beverage out of the village.

The District Municipal Council was established in 1953 and the members of the

Council were elected and chosen by the villagers. The role of this council was to

oversee the socio-economic development of the village. In addition, the Council

was assigned to help or assist the villagers when problems arose. Since 1953, the

standard of living of residents has improved.

By July 1975, the Perak State Government had officially taken over the control of

the District Municipal Council. The overall changes in political and administration

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structure had increased the development fund allocated to the village to stimulate

its economic development. At the end of the year 1979, Kampung Ayer Kala

came under the jurisdiction of Lenggong District Municipal Council.

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POPULATION AND HOUSING

There are currently around 2000 residents in the village. Nearly most of them are

Chinese and only a very small proportion of them are foreign workers from other

ethnic groups. There are over 300 houses in the area. Recent socio-economic

development in the village has stimulated the rapid development of housing in

Kampung Ayer Kala as most of the residents can now afford to rebuild their

houses into modern brick houses. Despite this, there are well-preserved wooden

houses which can still be seen in the area.

A residential area in the village.

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ECONOMIES ACTIVITIES

The Perak State Government distributed a total of 5-acres of agricultural land to

the villagers in Kampung Ayer Kala. It is one of the efforts of the Government to

boost the economy in this area by encouraging residents to grow rubber trees and

oil palm in the land allocated. The rubber industry has remained the main source

of income for most of the villagers while there are others who grows lime,

bananas and durians. Only a very small proportion of villagers are vegetable

farmers. The vegetable farms are located on the outskirts of the village.

There are only a few grocery shops and a small wet market which sell basic

necessities for the residents. Most goods sold are goods are transported from Ipoh.

Hence, the grocery supplies in the shops come with slightly higher price due to

high transportation fees.

Limes plucked from local orchards.

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One of the grocery shops in the village.

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TOURISM

Wat Luang Poh Tuad Ayer Kala is situated at Kampung Sawa, Lenggong, Perak.

It is a small Thai Temple to worship a revered Buddhist monk, Luang Poh Tuad.

He was born in B.E.2125 (the year 1582) in Suan Chan village. The legendary

story of Luang Poh Tuad was passed on by word of mouth over the centuries.

One the legends concern a Crystal Ball which was given by a large python to

Luang Poh Tuad as an infant of 5-6 months. The large python twined around

Luang Poh Tuad and scared his mother. To save her son, she remembered an old

belief to present seven wild flowers of different colors to the python. A miracle

happened as the python spitted out a crystal ball on Luang Poh Tuad’s chest.

Many people planned to steal the Crystal Ball and yet all of them encountered

tragic incidents. With the Crystal Ball, the family of Luang Poh Tuad became very

wealthy and deeply devoted to the Buddha by making offerings to the Sangha

(monk), building temples and helping the poor. Luang Poh Tuad began to learn

about Buddha teachings at the young age of 5 and he becomes a monk when he

was 12 years old. Since then, he dedicated his life to the Dharma.

The temple was founded by an Indonesia born Chinese who was diagnosed with

cancer. He was requested by the holy spirit of Luang Poh Tuad to build a temple

close to Ayer Kala, Lenggong, Perak. The temple slowly gained fame as the story

of the recovery of the Indonesian Chinese man spread. Many people are said to

have struck the lottery after rubbing the Daimyo oak tree (the spot where Luang

Poh Tuad passed away). In fact, a number would appear on the tree after rubbing

it. Trips are frequently organized by tourist agencies to visit the temple. The

tourists worship status of Luang Poh Tuad and his fellow monks and they bathe in

the water from the holy well in this temple.

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The WatLuang Poh Tuad Ayer Kala.

After the tourists visit the temple, they will normally have a meal at the local

restaurant, Xin Jiang Restaurant (新江酒家 ). The well-known dishes in this

restaurant are fresh handmade fish balls, steamed freshwater fish and fish scale

jelly. During the holidays, there will be swarms of tourists who pour into the

village to try delicious food at this restaurant.

The famous Xin Jiang Restaurant (新江酒家) located in the village.

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Steamed freshwater fish served at the Xin Jiang Restaurant (新江酒家).

Handmade fish balls served at the Xin Jiang Restaurant (新江酒家).

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PLACES OF WORSHIP

Most of the residents in Kampung Ayer Kala are Buddhists and only a small

proportion of them are Christians. There are several places of worship in the

village.

拿督公亭 (Na Tuk Gong Shelter) is a place to worship the local guardian spirits in

the village. When it comes to Hungry Ghost Festival or Wesak Day, a Buddhist

choir group will be invited to perform in this village.

拿督公亭 (Na Tuk Gong Shelter) located at the village.

爱育嘉拉佛教会 (Ayer Kala Buddhist Association) is a meeting place for

Buddhists in Kampung Ayer Kala.

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爱育嘉拉佛教会 (Ayer Kala Buddhist Association) located at the village.

爱育嘉拉龙普托圣塔（Wat Luang Poh Tuad Ayer Kala) is a Thai Temple which

is a famous tourist spot located 2 kilometers away from Kampung Ayer Kala.

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EDUCATION

There are a kindergarten and a primary school in the village which provide basic

education for the children in the village.

The kindergarten is named “Xiao Qing Qing Kindergarten” (小亲亲幼儿园). It

was built and sponsored by a Christian Society.

The Xiao Qing Qing Kindergarten (小亲亲幼儿园).

The only primary school in the village is SRJK (C) Ayer Kala Lenggong Perak.

The school was built on 18th March, 1946 and moved to the existing address by

the year 1950. There are a total of 67 students in the school and only 2 of them are

Malays while the rest are Chinese. The principal is Mdm. Goh Yan Chew and she

is assisted by another 11 teaching staffs and 2-3 supporting staffs. The mission of

the school is to achieve the status of Top 5 Primary Schools in Perak state. Hence,

the dedicated teachers have organized tuition class to improve the grades of the

students, especially in subjects such as Malay Language and English Language.

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The front of the SRJK (C) Ayer Kala Lenggong Perak.

There are only 6 classrooms in this school, i.e. one classroom for each level

(standards 1 to 6). The classrooms are well-equipped with all the teaching

amenities to provide the best study environment for the students. There are a few

societies in the school such as Malay, English and Chinese Language Society, Red

Crescent Society, Athletics Society and Basketball Society. The Basketball

Society is rather active and has won the championship in a Lenggong district

competition.

A classroom in the SRJK (C) Ayer Kala Lenggong Perak.

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Part of the teaching process is computerized through the invention of Frog Virtual

Learning Environment Programme. It is a teaching software which allows the

teachers to post assignments or exercises online and students can access them with

their ID and passwords.

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PROBLEMS

This village faces 2 main problems: the outmigration of youths which has led to a

declining population and limited public facilities and amenities.

Many villagers from the younger generation have out-migrated to urban areas.

The main reason for this move is the limited employment opportunities Ayer Kala

new village. As a result, this village’s population has been slowly but steadily

declining in recent years.

There is no clinic, post office or government office in this village. Villagers have

to travel to Lenggong or Ipoh for medical care or to get access to postal services,

etc. To make matters worse, there is very limited public transport and this makes it

very inconvenient for locals to travel to nearby towns.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

Increasing the Job Opportunities in the Village

Lack of job opportunities has pushed many youths to the urban areas. Therefore,

the injection of new investments and related employment opportunities are crucial

for Ayer Kala’s long term survival. As this is an agriculture based economy, new

industries could focus on the processing of agriculture products.

Small Government Division to Help In Sending The Document To The Main

Government

A small government division can be set up in the village help the villagers to send

in important documents to the main government offices located at Lenggong and

Ipoh. This can reduce the burden of the villagers as normally they need to rely on

public transportation which is hardly available in this area. The small government

division can also help to process the requests of villagers to improve the amenities

and facilities of the village.

Request To Improve Public Transport

If the tourism value of this village can be tapped on and if new job opportunities

are available, the demand for public transport would increase. This could then lead

to improved frequency and reliability of Public Transport.

Set Up Clinics or Healthcare Centre

Normally the villagers have to travel far to Lenggong to seek medical help from

private clinics and hospitals as there is no clinic in the village. Hence, the set-up

of a clinic is essential, especially for emergency cases. In addition, the availability

of medical help can improve the standard of living of the villagers. If the small

population does not warrant the establishment of a clinic, perhaps the services of a

mobile clinic once or twice a week would be a good start.

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPOTUNITIES

There are a few entrepreneurship opportunities in the village. First of all, a

medium-size rubber processing factory can be set up. This allows more rubber

sheets to be produced and increases the income of owners of rubber estates and

smallholdings. In addition, by doing this, the job opportunities in the village can

be increased and this could encourage the younger generation to stay back in the

village.

Besides, the owners of lime orchards could produce lime juice packed in bottles

and make it a specialty of the village. The lime juice products are less affected by

price fluctuations than lime fruit itself. Thus, the income of the farmers can

become more stable.

The village is famous for its fresh handmade fish balls. However, it can only be

found in Xin Jiang Restaurant. The restaurant owner should be encouraged to

produce the fish balls in larger quantity and to pack and sell them to nearby towns.

At the same time, by commercializing the fish ball products, more people will get

to know about the village and this will increase its tourism value.

DISCLAIMER:

Information contained in this report was compiled by the University’s students on voluntary basis.

Although every effort has been made to check the accuracy of the report, the University accepts no

responsibility whatsoever for any errors or omissions, if any, the University reserves the right to

make changes on the information at any time without prior notice

Should there be any queries regarding contents of the report, please contact:

Department of Soft Skills Competency

Tel: 03-78582628 ext 8274, 8656, 8269 (Klang Valley Campus)

05- 4688888 ext 2297/2299/2300 (Perak Campus)