Originally Posted by
k00L
After little India riot, most foreign workers avoid going little india, they rather hang around the dormitory neighbourhood. Retailers take note, if you set up prata shops in JLD for the workers living in Jurong dorm, sure huat ah!!
Insight meets Mr Palaniyappan Sakthivel, 34, and Mr Natarajan Muruganandam, 26, at a meeting room at their Jalan Papan dormitory deep in the heart of an industrial zone off Jurong Port Road.
They are among 5,000 foreign workers who count Terusan Lodge I as their temporary home while they earn a living here.
The interview with the duo, who are fellow construction workers at Singapore company TTJ Design, is at 10.30pm on a warm Wednesday night.
As our driver turns onto the unevenly paved road at 5A Jalan Papan, we see workers walking around freely, having their meals at a canteen or running errands at a convenience store.
Both of us get curious looks. The dormitory's night supervisor, Mr Charles Allimuthu, ushers us into a clinically corporate meeting room, with a white board, sofa, a meeting table and six roller chairs, their yellowing plastic covers still attached.
Mr Palaniyappan, who is helping build Mediapolis@one-north in Buona Vista that will house MediaCorp and other firms, and Mr Muruganandam, who is working on the Thomson MRT Line, arrive at 10.45pm, having washed up after a day's work.
Why do you visit Little India?
N: We talk about what we read in newspapers and magazines. Sometimes, if there's a newcomer here from our village, he can tell us how our family is doing.
S:Some of our friends who have just come back from a short holiday to India will bring some things for us from our family, like sweets and homemade snacks.
We go to Little India once a month. Only when we need to buy something do we go to Little India. If not, we don't go.
How do you unwind on your other Sundays off?
S: Every day when we finish work and come back to the dorm, shower and sleep, it's late at night. We need to wake up early, sometimes 6am, 6.30am.
On Sunday, we can wake up at 11am and eat breakfast - or wake up at 2pm also can. So whenever we can rest on our day off, we take our rest.
N: They show Tamil movies in the dormitory. Also, different blocks have television sets showing different channels.