BATU GAJAH

 

Overview

Batu Gajah is the capital city of Kinta District, Perak, Malaysia. The name Batu Gajah ('batu' is stone and 'gajah' is elephant in the Malay language), is presumably derived from two large boulders that resembled elephants found along the Kinta River. Folklore claims that huge elephant figures were made of stones to scare away the elephants that destroyed the villagers' sugar cane crops.

Batu Gajah was an ideal place for Chinese immigrants to stay and work during those years as it was famous for tin mining opportunities. Another geographical feature is Batu Gajah lies on the bank of Sungai Kinta, a little downstream from the major confluence of Sungai Raya. It started out as one of the many villages of mukim Sungai Terap, developed under its titular chief, the Sri Amar DiRaja, since the early 19th century.

This contributes to a significant percentage of Chinese in the population of Batu Gajah today. The Indian Settlement village at Changkat has a large population of Indians and Punjabis who built one of the oldest Sikh temples in Perak.

Locals and tourist enjoy attractions which include two golf courses, Kinta Golf Club and Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Course, and nearby pre-independence castle built by a Scottish rubber plantation owner, Sir William Kellie Smith: Kellie's Castle.

In recent years, Batu Gajah has seen a lot of improvement. Recently,a new large post office was built and the scenery around Batu Gajah has been greatly improved. Majlis Daerah Batu Gajah (MDBG), the district council, has greatly enhanced the scenery of this town by planting trees, repainting and keeping this town cleaner.

In 2007, Batu Gajah received a new Batu Gajah railway station. Near Kampung Pisang at the southern end of town, it replaced the old station at Jalan Pusing which is being turned into a museum.

Accessibility and Transportation

A new four-lane highway connects to the Ipoh-Lumut Highway at Seputeh and ties to the North-South Expressway at Gopeng. The highway passes near the new railway station through Bemban at the West side of town.

Most tourists bypass Batu Gajah on their way to Pangkor Island or after stopping at nearby Kellie's Castle.  However, a good way to explore the town is by walking on the heritage trail, which is about 5km in total.  At the square in the town centre, there is a large billboard headed Batu Gajah Heritage Trail and providing photos, a map and details of 24 of the main heritage sights.  This billboard was produced by the Kinta Heritage Group in collaboration with Tourism Perak and the District Council.

Places of Attraction

Starting on Jalan Pusing, the first point of interest is the Sri Subramaniyar Swami Kovil, the main Hindu temple in the town. It is scene of the annual Panggani Uthiram festival to honour Lord Murugan during which devotees carry heavy kavadis to fulfil vows. The roofline of the temple is topped with a colourful tiered gopuram (tower of South Indian design) and detailed statues of deities and other characters.

Across the road is the Old Railway Station itself. This was used until 2007 when a new station was opened just outside the town centre. The Kinta Valley Railway line from Ipoh to Batu Gajah was completed in February 1984. There is a restaurant and a barber shop using the station building now.

The trail continues past the so-called New Town (actually quite old, dating from the 1890s, and is an area of traditional shop houses) and a brand new mosque.

Nearby are some wooden shophouses which were part of the original Old Town, an area alongside the river that was used to transport tin ore downstream and to bring in supplies. It was then a rough area with gambling and opium dens, brothels, liquor shops where tin miners would spend their wages. Opposite is Kuan Tay Temple, the oldest Chinese temple in town.

At the top of the incline the ground levels out to a flat area raised above the town centre below. On this small plateau, the British built their settlement. They drained the swamps, constructed proper sanitation, cleared jungle and landscaped the scenery. Jalan Changkat runs the length of this plateau and here the colonials built all the familiar institutions of Empire that they needed - namely the club, bungalows, police station, court, offices, hospital, church and cemetery.