UTAR NEW VILLAGE COMMUNITY PROJECT

REPORT

NAME OF NEW VILLAGE:

LALOH拉拢

KELANTAN

Project carried out by:

Student Name

ID Number

Course

Year / Trimester

1. Lock Tze Wei

1202268

Bachelor of Engineering

(Hons) Electronic

Engineering

Y1/T2

DATE OF COMPLETION

NOVEMBER 2013

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ABSTRACT

Kampung Laloh was established in the early 20th

century when it had a population of

about 500. It is located in the district of Kuala Krai in the state of Kelantan. A town

close to this new village is Bandar Kuala Krai. Villagers are engaged in the local

rubber estates/smallholdings, oil palm plantations and logging industry. Some

villagers also operate small stalls in the village. There are kindergartens, a primary

school and a secondary school in Kg Laloh. There are opportunities to develop the

tourism potential in Kg Laloh. Air terjun Lata Rek is one of the local tourist

attractions.

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INTRODUCTION

Kampung Laloh is located in Kuala Krai district in the state of Kelantan (north

east of west Malaysia). Bandar Kuala Krai is a town close to this village. The driving

distance between the village and Bandar Kuala Krai approximately 30 km. Kampung

Laloh is linked to the state capital, Kota Bahru, by a 100 km trunk road. In Kampung

Laloh, the land is hilly and before the 20th

century the entire area was tropical rain

forest. One of the major rivers flowing through the village is Sungai Lebir which then

flows some 80 km northwards through one of most densely populated flood plains on

the Malay Peninsular to its estuary in the South China Sea near the State capital of

Kota Bharu.

Figure 1: Sungai Lebir photo taken on the heavy traffic bridge.

Kg Laloh’s current population in 2013 is approximately 3000. When the

village was founded, it had a population of only 500. This demographic information

is obtained from an interview with one of AJK JKKKP or Ahli Jawatankuasa

Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung Persekutuan.

During the period of Emergency in Malaya, this village was closely guarded

by soldiers under the British authorities. The aim was to prevent villagers from

providing supplies to the communist insurgents. Villagers whom we interviewed

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informed us that life during the Emergency was tough and strict curfew hours were

enforced.

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ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES

The main sources of income in Kampung Laloh are as follows:

1) Rubber trees were introduced by the British government which even provided

3 hectares of land to each family for their rubber smallholding. The locals saw the

opportunities of rubber cultivation, and planted to supplement their income. As years

went by, income from the rubber smallholdings became the main source of income.

As Kg Laloh does not have facilities to process the latex, villagers sell the latex to a

collecting center shown in figure 2.

Figure 2: The locals sells their latex here (pembeli getah berlesen)

The collecting centre then sends the latex to processing plants.

Nowadays, the latex is sent to nearby towns where processing and

manufacturing takes place. Products include footwear and other items of daily

use.

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Figure 3: rubber plantation is one of main source income for Kampung Laloh

2) Kg Laloh is surrounded by jungle. Logging and work in a medium scale

timber furniture factory provide another source of income for villagers.

Figure 4: A medium scale timber furniture factory.

This factory manufactures furniture upon order. Its main products are

furniture made from huge “kayu balak” tree trunks.

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Furthermore, there are some villagers who work in big oil palm plantations.

Trading in livestock such as cows and goat provide another source of income.

Some villagers operate small stalls in front of their houses or in small shoplots.

Figure 5: A Malay stall selling nasi ayam (chicken rice)

Figure 6: A shop selling hardware and tyres

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Figure 7: A small coffee shop set up in front of a family home.

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPORTUNITY

Rubber estates/smallholdings continue to flourish in Kg Laloh. Perhaps there

are opportunities for the establishment of a rubber processing/manufacturing

operation in the village to tap on its latex directly. Land in the village is relatively

inexpensive and the cost of labour is low.

Besides, the existing timber furniture factory could be expanded and its

technology upgraded. New furniture factories could also be set up to tap on timber

from the surrounding jungle.

Lastly, there may be opportunities for new minimarkets and grocery shops.

Currently, there is a weekly market held on Fridays.

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EDUCATION

Kampung Laloh has education institution which range from kindergartens to a

secondary school. From age 3 to 5, many children are enrolled at a kindergarten.

One of the kindergartens was built in 1980.

Figure 8: Tabika Mohd Amin managed by Jabatan Kemajuan Masyarakat

There is preschool for children aged 6, before the commencement of formal

school education. This to ensure a smooth transition when the children start primary

school.

Figure 9: preschool called SK LALOH

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There is only one primary school in this new village. It is named Sekolah

Kebangsaan Laloh and was established in 1947 with 420 students and 40 teachers.

Village children also have access to primary schools in nearby villages/towns.

S.K.Laloh has facilities comparable to that in some urban schools, including having

their own ICT lab with internet facilities. This survey team could not obtain detailed

information about the local schools because our visit to the village was during the

school holidays when most school staff were away.

Figure 10: Entrance of primary school

Figure 11: Compound of the primary school, including a big field and 4 stories of

classrooms

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Figure 12: The picture of right show ICT lab facility in the primary school

Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Laloh (SMK Laloh) is the only secondary

school in Kampung Laloh. Students from villages nearby also attend this school.

SMK Laloh started operations in 1/12/1989 and accepted its first batch of students on

1/1/1990. The school was upgraded to Grade A in 1/11/1997 and it now comprises

three blocks with three floors each. In 1994, SMK Laloh started to run a hostel for

male and female students from neighboring areas. Currently this secondary school

has 1100 students and 123 teachers. Besides, it is a centre for school-based

assessment or pusat pbs (pentaksiran berasaskan sekolah) for Kelantan. The school

enrolment is increasing in tandem with Kg Paloh’s population increase and the inflow

of students from nearby areas. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of tables and chairs

as the purchase of new ones is not adequate to keep up with the increase in school

enrolment. Besides, there is no school hall and this limits the activities which can be

held in the school. Sometimes, the internet facilities break down. During the

monsoon season, SMK Laloh is often closed as the school is used as a relief centre

for flood victims.

Upon completing their secondary school education, students who wish to

pursue tertiary level education have to move to urban areas.

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Figure 13: The main entrance to the secondary school

Figure 14: The school compound where daily assembly of students is held.

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SOCIAL, CULTURE AND RELIGIOUS PRACTICES

In Kampung Laloh, all the villagers are Malays who are Muslims. The

majority of the population are children and the elderly. Many youths have migrated

to urban areas in search of higher education or better employment opportunities.

Because of composition of its population, the main language spoken is Bahasa

Melayu. The good infrastructure in this new village has changed its social interaction

patterns.

Figure 15: This picture shows the good condition of village roads;

telecommunication poles can also be seen

In 1980, the public bus service to this village was stopped because most villagers own

automobiles. The availability of good telecommunication service has led many

villagers to switch from the practice of visiting friends’ at home to the habit of

communication by phone. The villagers of Kampung Laloh sleep safe and sound as

crime rate here is very low. Besides, it has a police station and KRT (kawasan rukun

tetangga) as well as JKKKP duties person to ensure the safety of people through

patrolling.

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Figure 16: Police station Laloh

Islam is the religion in this village. Places of worship include one main

mosques and two small mosques in the village.

Figure 17: Main mosques (PASTI AL-UBUDIAH) in Kampung Laloh

Persatuan Kharat Kematian is an NGO in the village to help Malays cover the cost of

burial. Funds are collected from villagers who donate generously. A big piece of

land has been designated as the village burial ground. In fact the space so large that a

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big portion of land is on loan to villagers who use it to grow crops such as bananas

and herbs.

Figure 18: Malay buried ground

In addition to the religious festivals, villagers gather at weddings and other

family events when practically the whole village is invited.

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PROBLEMS

The main concern of Kampung Laloh is its water supply. Based on our

interviews, it seems that the demand for water has exceeded supply. Many

complaints have been submitted to the relevant authorities but no action has been

taken so far. Basically Air Kelantan is in charge of water supply and it was privatized

in the year 1995. It seems to have neglected village demand and focused on the urban

areas. The representative of head of village has tried to solve the case by bringing up

the issues to federal level but water is currently under the jurisdiction of the state

government which is run by a different political party from the federal government.

Villagers complain about insufficient land for new housing. The federal

government in parliament has tabled good initiatives to help the rural population by

implementing Mesra Rakyat and PPRT (Projek Perumahan Rakyat Miskin Tegar).

Unfortunately, the policy requires own land status or free hold land (hak milik kekal

tanah) in order to build the houses with government subsidies (50% of the whole cost

structure) while the other half will be borne by the owner themselves. There are

complicated land issues involved which slows down the implementation of PPRT in

this area.

Flooding is a major problem in this village. The Kelantan Department of

Drainage and Irrigation has taken the initiative to address the issue by setting up flood

water level monitoring in certain parts of the village. But this does not solve the root

cause of the problem. The drains need to be deepened and widened to handle the

large water volume during the rainy season. Annual flooding during the rainy season

causes damage and loss of income for many villagers.

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Figure 19: A flood monitoring water level is placed

Kg Laloh does not have a bank or any other financial institution while the

local clinic deals with minor ailments, villagers have to travel to Bandar Kuala Krai

(a 30-minute drive from Kg Laloh) for treatment of serious ailments and in cases of

emergency.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

The Kelantan Department of Drainage and Irrigation should improve the

drainage system. Drains need to be widened or deepened. In addition, sedimentation

along the river needs to be cleared on a regular basis.

Figure 20: Sugai Lebir where by the depth is too swallow

The school should apply for funds from the Ministry of Education for the

construction of a school hall. This would benefit the students who can then hold

indoor sports activities.

Water and land issues may be resolved if the state and federal governments

put aside their political differences to handle the interest of the villagers.

Villagers need to be vigilant and cooperate with the police. Recent thefts of

copper wire from telecommunication poles can only be dealt.

With if the police and local voluntary groups get the support from residents

who could report on suspicious characters in the village.

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Figure 21: Copper wire stolen from a telecommunication pole.

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TOURISM VALUE

Kg Laloh has a hydroelectric dam at Lata Rek. Villagers as well as visitors to

this area enjoy the scenic waterfall and surrounding greenery. Fishing is also a

popular sport in this area.

Besides visiting the hydroelectric dam at Lata Rek, tourists would also enjoy

the local cuisine, especially specialties such as nasi kerabu and local “kuih muih” or

desserts. These tourist attractions need to be publicized to draw more visitors to the

village.

Figure 20: waterfall and hydroelectric dam at Lata Rek

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: 03-79582628 ext 8274, 8656, 8269 (Klang Valley Campus)

05- 4688888 ext 2295/2297/2299/2300 (Perak Campus)