Big Little India

Name: Big Little India
Brand: VoiceMap
SKU: 514
Price: 4.99 USD
Availability: InStock
Rating: 4.0 (74 reviews)
Author: Jaynt

(74 reviews)

This is a 1.7mi walking tour

It takes an average of 60 mins to complete.

Singapore

$4.99

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About the Tour

Explore Little India with Jaynt Mohinani, who was born and raised in Singapore. Singapore's connection to India is as old as the city itself. This walk will explore that history, and unearth personal stories that breathe life into this area.

Tour Producer

Jaynt Mohinani

1 tour

I am VoiceMap's business development manager in Singapore.

Preview Location

Location 32

Race Course Road

Race Course Road is called just that because it was close to the site of the country's first race course at nearby Farrer Park. The track has long since moved but the name stuck. Unfortunately, now Race Course Road is famous in Singapore for a completely different reason.

K... Race Course Road is called just that because it was close to the site of the country's first race course at nearby Farrer Park. The track has long since moved but the name stuck. Unfortunately, now Race Course Road is famous in Singapore for a completely different reason.

Keep walking and I'll tell you about it.

Almost every Sunday, when most of the Indian migrant workers would get the day off, they would congregate at Little India especially at the open fields you see on your right. Nothing at all sinister about it. People would gather, relax on the grass, mingle, catch up with old friends, make new ones, have a couple of drinks... You get the idea. But like with any other social environment anywhere else in the world, some people overdo things. The police were constantly breaking up scuffles and rousing people from a drunken slumber. Up until 8th December 2013, this had been going on for years without any major incident.

It all started when a 33 year-old Indian construction worker was run over by a private bus and killed. A crowd stated to gather and the more it grew, the more unruly it became. When the police arrived to disperse the crowd, they ignited and turned on the police, an act almost unheard of in Singapore.

The crowd threw beer bottles and other items at the cops and civil defence guys, set vehicles on fire, overturned cop cars. After reinforcements were brought in, there were 300 cops on the scene. A figure unheard of anywhere other than a parade. It was reported that at its peak, the crowd was 400 people strong. Complete mayhem in the centre of tranquil Singapore. I bet you can't picture that. I couldn't until I saw the video footage of the riot.

Anyway it took 2 hours until reinforcements arrived to quell the situation. All in all, 39 cops and 4 civil defense guys were injured and 24 migrant workers arrested. I remember hearing about it the next morning when my girlfriend told me. I brushed it off, because in Singapore even when a group of four get into a brawl, the cops charge them with rioting. Imagine my shock when I opened up the newspaper on December 9th and saw a picture of the incident. Singapore hadn't had a riot in 40 years. The last one was in 1969. Read More

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Major Landmarks

Mustafa Center
Dunlop Street
Sri Veeramakaliamman
Desker Road

Getting There

Route Overview

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Start location
6 Bukit Timah Rd, Singapore
Total distance

3km
Final location
37 Upper Dickson Rd, Singapore 207496
Distance back to start location

259.44m

Directions to Starting Point

Take the MRT to the 'Little India' Station and come out at Exit C

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Sri Veeramakaliamman, Desker Road, Mustafa Center

Best time of day

Sunday evening would be the best time.

Precautions

Singapore is generally very safe. Just make sure you obey the law: don't jaywalk, and follow your guide's instructions.

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“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”