Pulau Tekong
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| Names | |
|---|---|
| English: | Tekong Island |
| Chinese: | 德光岛 |
| (Pinyin: | déguāngdǎo) |
| Malay: | Pulau Tekong |
| Tamil: | fill in |
Pulau Tekong is the largest of Singapore's outlying islands. It is found off Singapore's northeastern coast, but is actually nearer to Johor, Malaysia than the mainland itself. Land reclamation work is currently undergoing off the southern part of the island. Malaysia has referred the reclamation issue to International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea on July 2003. Subsequently, the tribunal ordered a year-long joint study on the issue. The conflict was resolved on April 2005 following a signing of agreement between the 2 countries. The agreement include modifications of the island in area D. The signed agreement is sent International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for final judegement.
The island is used exclusively as a training base for various Singapore Army Units where Singaporean males conscripted into National Service and is home to the Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC), Infantry Headquarters and the School of Infantry Specialists (SISPEC), with some 5,000 men residing there at any one time for up to several months each.
BMTC and SISPEC both feature multi-storeyed barracks at company level with their own lecture rooms, air-conditioned recruits' messes and shared basketball courts. There are also several reasonably well-equipped sports grounds and stadia with swimming pools, a medical centre with heli-evacuation capabilities, shared canteens and an E-Mart, a shop selling both army kit (paid for with servicemen's credits) and cash items ranging from toiletries to snacks. Electricity, however, is currently supplied by diesel-fed generators; an undersea cable will begin operating later in 2004. Access to the island is by state-subsidised ferry service(Penguin Ferry). However the public are not permitted entry except on official business.
Pulau Tekong was recently the hiding place in March 2004 for a group of armed robbers which consists of two Indonesians and a Malaysian. They fled from Malaysia, sparking off a massive, coordinated manhunt involving Air Force helicopters, commandos, ground surveillance radar, and troops from the 2nd Singapore Infantry Brigade. They were later charged with illegal entry and possession of firearms.
Pulau Tekong in Singaporean Folklore
In Singaporean folklore, the island is deemed to be extremely haunted. It is unclear if these beliefs actually date back to the days when Tekong was inhabited by civilians or if they sprung up after the island was taken over as military territory.