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What was Singapore like during the 1960s?I lived and grew up in Singapore in the 1960s and thereafter lived in many other countries for more than twenty years. I hope my past experiences living overseas will help me give you a more worldly-wise and balanced account of life in the 1960s. This post is told from ground up, from the perspective of the common man, and not a top down statistician or politician’s macro view of the country’s independence, racial riots, economic struggles, politics,…etc.It is much based on my life in Redhill Close in the 1960s which we had both a surburban and rural lifestyle rolled into one - one that probably represented 85% of the people in 1960s.This article is adapted from a blog post Bon Voyage.If you like this post, please share it so that more people, especially youngsters, will know how life was like in the same space, but in a different time in the 1960s.IntroductionI grew up in Redhill Close and so this estate is very close to my heart. It was built in 1955 under the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT), a housing scheme under the pre-independence Lim Yew Hock Government. It was commonly known as "chit lau chu" or 'seven story houses' in Hokkien or Teochew.When the flats were built, there were shanty attap hut dwellings scattered in its surroundings.The estate was accessible by a closed-loop ring road from Tiong Bahru Road and was only served by the Hock Lee Bus Company's Number 8 Service for a while. That went on until a new road Jalan Bukit Merah was constructed and appropriately called 'Xin Lor' (新路/'new road') in Hokkien, by the locals. Bus Service number 8 plied from Redhill Close to North Canal Road, near Raffles Place.LivelihoodMost of the dwellers of the attap hut kampong were pig farmers and other forms of subsistence farmers. Those who couldn't live off the ground, or get a job, sold cooked food in public places, which was illegal without a food catering licence.Among the hawkers that stood out was the fish ball noodle stall because they had errand boys going around the estate hitting at a longitudinally cut bamboo stick making a rhythmic "kok-kik-kok" sound to solicit for more business.They would take orders and deliver the noodles to their customers without delivery charges. Some customers living in the upper floors of the apartment blocks would lower their rattan basket tied to a rope to receive their bowls of noodles to save the boys climbing up several floors.Each bowl of noodles cost about 20 cents and the boy's wages was probably one Straits Settlement Dollar a day, about ten Singapore Dollars today.—-There are many such hawkers selling a varied number of services. Some of them would do more than just selling food and will perform to attract attention. One of them is the muah-chee hawker. He sells a dessert that is a cooked rice dough that is mixed with sugar, peanut powder and sesame seeds. While mixing the dough with the condiments, he would be bouncing himself up and down by flexing his knees as if he was dancing an A-Go-Go dance. Hence we called him the A-Go-Go man and he is often the highlight of the day when he stopped near my home. Kids would run to him to buy the muah-chee like he was the Pied Piper.For those who is not well versed with Chinese food. this is how muah chee looks like:Then there was the Iceball man. He will grind a block of ice into snow and colour it will sugar syrup and condensed milk. This was how it looked like:When the Ice-ball man was not around, we would buy ice-bags (‘sng bao’ 冰包), which were literally sugared and coloured drink frozen in plastic bags from one of the ground floor apartments that sold them. We would bite the corner of the sng bao and start sucking the melted juice that came out from it, in the process freezing our lips to a swollen red. Even with my swollen red lips I would lie to my mum that I did not spend my money foolishly on sng baos, thinking that I could fool her.There were also hawkers that were not selling food, but other services. There was one that sold glass. He would cut glass to measure for homes that happened to have broken a piece of table top glass or a cupboard glass. You wouldn’t think that he would be selling much, but there was demand those days.Another one was a tinsmith. He went around mending pots and pans. Aluminium pots and pans were used so intensively that they wear off and leak. Or it could be an old thermos flask that had started to leak. That was when the local friendly tinsmith who carried his stall as two wooden boxes balanced over each side of a bamboo pole over his shoulders came to the rescue.Yet another was a hawker that sharpened scissors. He had a hand operated grind wheel and a grind stone to fine tune the blade sharpness after going through the grind wheel. He announced his arrival in the neighbourhood with by yelling “buah katoh” (磨剪刀, “sharpening scissors” in Hokkien). Scissors were an essential item those days, as many were home-based seamstresses or housewives who mended their kids’ torn clothes frequently. Those boys who played rough games like Hantam Bola or merely got into fights frequently, like I did, can attest to that. I salute all those mothers who had so lovingly mended their children’s school uniforms those days, so that they can go to school the next day.Such repair services were needed because people could not afford to buy new replacements. It was a culture of keeping and repairing the old to make it work. Perhaps those trying times were also a training for mending human ties and making them work. Divorces were rarely heard of. People stayed married through thick and thin. Couples understood the need to tolerate, compromise and adjust. Divorces were taboos. It was a culture where people lived for keeps.Old things were used over and over again, until they were beyond repair and no more functional. People even used a kind of blue dye on old white shirts to make them look fluorescent and new looking again, instead of buying new ones.Prices for these hawker services were very competitive. Customers would bargain and try to save every cent they can get away with. We would even bring our own egg to the char kway teow (fried rice noodles with cockles) stall so that it will save us five cents.—-These illegal hawkers, as they were called, were constantly on the run from the Ministry of Environment enforcement officers.These officers were called 'teh gu' (地牛) in Hokkien, roughly meaning 'territorial bulls' when translated. When they caught the illegal hawkers, they would literally smash their stalls up into bits. Those were heartbreaking moments to bear, as we witnessed the hawkers' back breaking hard work for days or even months demolished right before their eyes.Yet the next day, they would be out selling their wares again. People got to eat and families needed to be fed. Life had to go on. People those days were tough and persistent. Only the fittest survived.However from the Government's point of view, they felt they had to be cruel to be kind, for the greater good of preserving public health and food safety. Most of these hawkers were eventually offered licence to sell their stuff in centralised food centres, now called 'hawker centres'.Animal FarmThe farmers would let their pigs roam around freely in the estate, where they (the pigs) would eat whatever scraps of food they could find and also conveniently crapped anywhere they liked.The farmers would also send their kids house-to-house to collect swill every morning - that is, the left over food, bones,…etc from households. The kid will collect the tin full of yesterday’s swill and give us an empty tin for the next day’s swill. The swill tin is usually a used cooking oil tin can with the top cut open with two holes for the improvised wire handle. Swill are filthy stuff of rotting food. With the uncovered top, it attracted houseflies and spread diseases. Therefore, sometime towards the late 1960s, the government provided plastic pails with covers for the swill and mandated that all swill be collected using them, putting an end to those rusty improvised swill cans.The swill would be collected and boiled en-mass to sterilise and then used to feed the pigs. Smelly stuff. Then every once a year, they will give every household a crate of 24 eggs to thank them for the swill. Nothing goes to waste those days.As kids, we had to watch out for those random heaps of shit in the playground and grass patches. When we played badminton, we had to be careful not to land the shuttlecock on any of those nasty heaps. With practice, we got more precise with where we wanted our shuttlecocks to land.The pigs and humans mostly co-existed in the same space peacefully. That is, until the retarded game of some boys daring each other to land a quick punch on any roaming pig and run. They chose the pig at random and did not victimise any of them. All pigs were considered on equal grounds. No pig was more equal than the others. The pig would scream out loud and run, and so would the boys. It was the boys' idea of having fun. Kids could be cruel with animals. Fortunately, they did that only very occasionally, when they felt that they needed some extra excitement in their already overstimulated minds.Stray dogs had it easier. They were all loved by the kids, especially the puppies. The dogs would learn commands and tricks like sitting down, rolling down and shaking hands very quickly. They also got fed little treats, like biscuits or pieces of bone. But the good times didn't last very long, as the authorities would send men with rifles to shoot them and cull their population. A very cruel practice that continued till a few years ago.Cats somehow got away. Cats always do.There were also goats herded by ethnic Indians in the neighbourhood. They would bring their goats out in the morning to graze on some grassland and then bring them back at sunset. In between, they would sell goat milk to the residents.FamiliesMy family moved from a squalid single shop house room at Clarke Quay, along the Singapore River (now a hip clubbing arena), to a two-bedroom apartment in Redhill. We were a first occupant of the then brand new flat. Then, the lifts frequently broke down as the kids from the neighbouring attap houses would come over to take joy rides. High rise dwellings and lifts were curiosities.When the sixteen storey apartment block (Block 55) was completed at Lengkok Bahru, up the hill from Redhill School, we kids from the seven storey houses went there and up to the top storey corridor. Sixteen storeys was a big deal then, when the highest you have been was only seven storeys. I remember when I first look down from the sixteenth storey, my first thought was that the cars looked like Matchbox cars and the people looked like ants.There are 21 blocks of two-bedroom flats in Redhill Close, numbered from 1 to 22, Block 4, is a row of single-storey shops. I remember that there were two provision shops, one photo studio, one laundry shop, one traditional Chinese medicine shop and a corner coffeeshop where fights happen frequently.The rent for each apartment was $52 a month for many years, until they were sold to the tenants in 1982.Most of the flats were lived in by ten or more people. Usually father, mother, eight kids and a grandma, all squeezed into about 600 square feet of floor. At night, every square foot of the floor was slept on and there were double deck or triple deck bunk beds to pack more in. Family members that had to use the toilet in the middle of the night had to be careful not to trample on their siblings.As if those conditions were not uncomfortable enough, it was common for families to take in additional member(s), usually a Malaysian relative working in Singapore to stay with them. Kinship was very strong. Together they would endure and tolerate physical discomfort, to help a kinsman to get ahead economically.Besides them, cousins also come to stay with us during their school holidays. We didn’t seem to mind and instead were delighted that there were more kids to play with.Some families eventually spilled over to the common public corridors to sleep in the night, when the kids grew up and needed more space.Most families lived well despite being financially strapped. However, there were some that didn’t get along too well. Upstairs from where we were, there was a family where the grown sons often get into fist fights with their father. Yet the children were very united when threatened by outsiders. Once we saw the sister, who was around eighteen years old, rushing downstairs with an iron pole in hand. While passing by our apartment, she told us that she is going to the market to fight some gangsters who were threatening his brother’s fish porridge stall.Some took on corporal punishment on their kids to the extreme. There was once when I saw a kid being severely caned by his elder sister and dragged out of the house without his pants. It was a deliberate oppressive act was to shame the child. The loud and desperate cries soon attracted a small crowd to the commotion! The crowd stood there watching, instead of stopping the abuse - an abuse that would likely damage the child psychology for years to come. The crowd also seemed to enjoy watching the abuse, like a show. I was petrified seeing how a kid whom I know, was rendered helpless by his own sister and was unable to protect something so fundamental like his own body and nudity.Money IssuesMany kids were undernourished and underweight and so they were fed free milk in school. It was compulsory for skinny kids.Most families had only one breadwinner. The mum would have to be a housewife to take care of the kids and the household.The fathers, those that were not illegal hawkers or professional gangsters mostly held blue-collar jobs like taxi drivers, carpenters, construction workers, vegetable sellers, fishmongers...etc.A very small number of them had a few years of formal education and those that spoke English were held in high regard and had comfortable desk jobs like bookkeepers, calligraphers, bank clerks,...etc. Those who completed their Senior Cambridge School Certificate (equivalent of 10 years in school) were prized possessions and were hired by British companies. These were the privileged ones, with the exception of those who had the untimely misfortune of working for the British Army, as they were retrenched in 1968 when the British troops withdrew from Singapore. Then, finding another desk job was hard.There was an exceptional one in my block, an interesting man who folded beautiful paper flowers and would finish his huge bouquet at 5pm every day. He would then take Bus Number 8 to deliver them to his client at North Canal Road.Wages were meagre and families lived from hand to mouth and paycheck to paycheck. Err… that is if you were one of the lucky ones to have a regular paycheck to start off with. Kids hardened by physical pains of corporal punishment, were petrified whenever they were threatened to have dinner taken away from them. These kids had experienced hunger and knew that having dinner forfeited would deal them the ultimate pain, worse than being beaten by the cane.Then, if you were a kid with three square meals a day, you were considered rich; and if you had less, you were considered poor. There were a visible number of families who just scraped through with three meals of very diluted rice porridge (with more liquid than grains) and black soy sauce. There were many who were poor. I have seen some going over to their neighbours to borrow rice.When money ran out, they borrowed.One of my neighbour’s daughter borrowed a few dollars from my sister and never returned it. Subsequently, she borrowed a dress and never returned it. Each time my sister asked her, she said the dress was in the wash, hanging out to dry, but we saw her wearing the dress later that day to work.I once played the game of Police-and-Thief with her younger brother. In this game, one group will play Thief while the other group, the Police, will go chasing them and bring them down physically. Being kids, it was a rough game. I caught up with her brother, made a dive and got hold of him by his shirt. In the process, I inadvertently tore his shirt. After that, he sat there quietly feeling very upset. Then, he told me that that was the only school shirt he had. I didn’t believe him, but the next day, I saw him going to school with his torn white shirt mended, quite obvious that it was badly torn.You see, his family lost their sole bread winner very early and they survived on his mother doing odd jobs that she could bring home here and there, until the oldest daughter finished school and started work as a secretary. Then, her salary supported the entire family, though secretaries didn’t earn a lot in the 1960s, probably drawing a salary of 100 Singapore dollars a month.One relative came over to borrow one thousand dollars (about SG$10,000 in today’s money) from us, as the husband and sole breadwinner was retrenched. It was a significant sum, but my father obliged. We were not rich and that sum was probably a bank overdraft. They eventually paid back.Forty years later, I met the son in a restaurant by chance and out of small talk courtesy suggested that we ought to meet for lunch someday. Instead of enthusiasm, I was shocked as he was evasive and suggested that I call his secretary to arrange. You see, this son had risen very high and wealthy, and was holding a comfortable senior position in the Establishment. He was probably afraid that I was asking for favours or help. But I had no such agenda and only meant to have lunch with a cousin whom I played with as a child. I was not in dire straits to need to borrow money, or ask for any help. That said, I am not sure if he would lend me money if I really needed it. Naturally, I didn’t contact his secretary and the lunch didn’t happen.The more entrepreneurial Redhill residents converted their living room into Chinese temple shrines to collect donations from worshippers; others converted their flat into gambling dens; and yet others sublet one of their bed rooms, packing the kids further into whatever space they could find. There was a married man and father of eight kids, who married a rich older woman and had a baby with her. There seemed to be an 'understanding' between the man and his two wives. In return, the second wife contributed financially to his family coffers.Some became tontine leaders that managed pools of subscriber contributed cash, but ran away with the money when the going got tough. Such cash was meant to serve as micro-loans to deserving members in times of need.Yet some others became illegal lottery bookies. They operated within a trusted network and sometimes communicated to their members via coded language scribbled like random graffiti on common walls. They made good money until the day when luck stacked against them and they had not enough money to pay the winners, as there were too many of them. And so they had to vanish. This was a blessing in disguise, as those that continued soon got arrested and thrown in jail. It was expected, as the police, too, learned the coded language enough to write the bookies’ fate on the walls.Some women worked as washerwomen, manually washing other people's laundry, as there were no domestic washing machines. Some worked as amahs (domestic servants) for expatriate Caucasian families. Yet others worked as seamstresses at home, so that they can continue to run the household and look after their children.The more desperate ones became bar girls, dance hostesses or prostitutes. These women of easy virtue would often end up having their daughters follow their footsteps when they got too old and their daughters got old enough.When all else failed, the desperate ones stole. When caught, they were first beaten up before being jailed, thus throwing their family into deeper jeopardy. Others became gangsters and ran prostitution dens and illegal casinos, extorted protection money, intimidated the weak and fought or killed their enemies.And that is why all parents wanted their children to study hard and do well in school, and not have to go through the physical hardship and financial uncertainties like those sea of nameless faces toiling in factories."Study hard and get a job that holds the pen, not one of rough (hard) labour," was the maxim.The New DawnIt was only a few years later in the late 1960s that there were more jobs, as Singapore's industrialisation plan began to trickle down to the masses. Then it was possible to get a job as a menial factory worker installing transistors for US$1 a day, which translated to SG$3 a day. A bowl of noodles costs 30 cents, so adjusted for inflation, it would be about SG$30 a day in today's money. It was still not much money, but it paid the bills.These factory workers would negotiate for free uniforms, so that they could save some money. Every cent counted. To make themselves a little different from others while donning the uniform, they would modify it a little bit here and there for some identity.Some female factory workers, particularly the Malay ones, would cut their uniforms very short and tight to exhibit their well endowed body and attract men. After a hard day's work of repetitive tedium, getting attention from the opposite sex helped to lighten their day and make the heart flutter a little. Canteen, common corridors and bus stops were their staging grounds.These sexy girls were so game into having a good time that they would respond to wolf whistles from construction workers in passing Datsun pickup trucks - much to the whistlers' delight.As people lived in cramped conditions, it was hard to find privacy in places for romance and physical intimacy. So when Tiong Bahru Park nearby was ready, many young couples went to the darker reaches of the park at night for some hanky panky and sex. They would lay their mats on the grass along the darker reaches of the park along the perimeters of Tiong Bahru Secondary School for their moments of ecstasy.However that didn’t always work, as sometimes, they would be watched by cheeky undercover National Environment officers on the pretext of catching litter bugs. These officers would confront the couple and issue a fine for littering, at the awkward moment when the man disposed his used condom on the grass. Thus giving a new meaning to being “caught with your pants down”. This cheeky voyeurism was called ‘liak kow’ in Hokkien (‘Catching Monkeys’). It begs the question as to who had a sadder sex life and who really had the last laugh.Left alone, it is human nature that men and women will find ways of dancing the mating game. This manifested as a bit of titillation here and a bit of flirtation there. Somehow, they would find gaps and opportunities amid their hard lives for some relief.The Original Old HillYes, there was indeed a little hill that was literally red in colour at the fringes of the estate, we called 'Au Buay Sua' in Hokkien, that translates to 'the hill behind' in English.Most people spoke Hokkien, Teochew or Cantonese; including some Malays and Indians who could speak them fluently. Conversely, many of the older Chinese folks could speak Malay fluently. Malay was an important common language those days. It is still the National Language of Singapore today, though many people can't speak it.The surrounding of Redhill Close was a random sprawl of shanty attap huts, separated by narrow winding mud tracks. At night, much of the kampong was not lighted. Some of the huts didn't even have electricity and fresh running water, and so relied on kerosene lamps and wells. Sanitation was simply served by huts with a hole in the ground. Some units did not even have land or dwelling registration.ReligionsThere were also two Chinese Folk Religion temples at the top, where many Chinese people worshipped at. Besides prayers, the mediums would occasionally go into trance to find answers to the worshippers' problems. During festivals, there were Hokkien or Teochew wayangs staged along the slope of the little red hill, attracting large crowds of audiences, along with hawkers, mini gambling den operators and other peddlers grabbing the chance to earn a few extra bucks.Most Chinese people worshipped Chinese Folk Religion deities, which is, contrary to popular belief, not the same as Taoism, although officially they are ignorantly and conveniently lumped into one. Taoism is a philosophy and arguably not a religion, though anything can be made into a religion if we try hard enough to do so.There was also a visible number of them that were Buddhists, some in their purest form practising Buddha’s teachings, whilst others were only into the exoteric rituals of prayers and joss sticks.Then there were a growing number of Chinese who converted to Christianity.The Malays were mostly Muslims and the Indians mostly Hindus.There was a time when a particular religion was systematically trying to convert everyone else. They claimed that their religion was the only Truth and that the rest of them were just superstitions.The irony is that a superstitious person will always be another person practising another religion, other than your own. You are never superstitious practising your own rituals in your own religion.That was not acceptable by some sections of the community and it took some 30 years later that a Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act was instituted in 1992.Really, all religions are man-made without exception, though most of them claim they are not a religion but a faith or a fellowship. I think that is mostly to wash away the bad memories of religious wars and malpractices in history. I think people should be free to believe what they want to believe and there should be respect all round not to coerce others into their religion.As Lee Kuan Yew once said to the effect that these religions (those accused to be mere superstitions) have given their believers a peace of mind for thousands of years, so who are we to say that they are false.However, there were situations when science could account for the superstitions. For instance whenever there was an eclipse of the moon in the 1960s, thousands of Redhill residents would come out to scare away the purported heavenly dog eating away the moon, by banging on their pots and pans to make a collective deafening ensemble. As a kid, I tried explaining to them the science of eclipses, but to no avail. They countered the argument by saying that the caretaker of the temple and their devotees were also banging on their pots and pans. Monkey see, monkey do.Sometimes I wonder if believers will eat shit if their religious leaders, too, ate shit.The TriadsThese shanty kampongs were breeding grounds and hideouts for the triads and they would have their initiation ceremonies almost uninhibited in the forested areas. Gangsters pursued by the police would run into the kampongs and the police would not dare to venture into those slums in the dead of the night in pitch darkness. So there, the triads festered.Once at a pasar malam (night market) along Jalan Bukit Merah, a young man snatched my mother's gold chain and jade pendant from her neck and ran, when she was bent down to examine something she wanted to buy. My mother gave chase and my sister barely 11 years old, grabbed me on a piggy back and ran with my mother. But we were not fast enough. It was quite a trauma for me as a five year old. The snatch thief ran and disappeared into the attap house cluster in the dead of the night. There was little we could do. A family friend suggested that we search the nearby grass patch, and that on the off chance, he might had the more valuable jade pendant carelessly slipped off the chain. We did that search and by sheer luck and to our delight, found the pendant.This incident was reported in the evening newspapers and my mother’s first time in the newspapers. The second time was later in 1964, when she was about to deliver my younger brother when there was a curfew outside in the aftermath of a racial riot. Luckily, she was picked up by a passing police patrol car that took her to the hospital.Ironically, my younger brother is the only one among the eight of us that was delivered in a hospital. The rest of us were delivered at home by midwives. These midwives learned their trade from their mothers and were not trained in medical schools, but were used by most mothers. Sometimes, there were mishaps and the weaker babies died. Only the fittest survived.By the early 1970s, pasar malams were banned, not for the incidents of snatch thievery, but for the bigger danger that they had become staging grounds for gang clashes. The night market crowd was used as a cover for gang members to form up before the battle without being noticed. Then on their leader's calls, they would charge their opponents with parangs (machetes), mangrove scaffold poles and metal pipes. Light bulbs filled with sulphuric acid became acid bombs and were hurled into the air at their opponents. It was a theatre of horror.Those fighters were fearless. They were fiercely loyal and were avowed to the code of silence to protect their brothers. They were motivated by a combination of sense of belonging, the security of a family, their boosted ego and the lure of money.It would be interesting to see how these fighters measure up against today’s MMA fighters in a free-for-all, where there are no rules, no referees and no time-out. Triad fighters fought to kill. In street battle, the one most fearless and motivated to kill will win. The order of importance is fearlessness, strength and martial art. It rhymes better in Hokkien as “it ta, zi laat, sa kanghu” (一胆，二力，三功夫).These gangs from Chap Pueh Sio Kun Tong (18 小坤堂), Dee Si Ang Koon (24 红根) and their spinoffs, often fought to settle territorial disputes.There were gang chants and songs to identify and set themselves apart. As all gang names were prefixed with numbers, gang members would challenge their opponent in coded language in Hokkien, such as, “What number are you playing?” or “Where are you playing?”. Such challenge and response protocols percolated down to the lower rungs of the gangs and then seeped out to copycats and kids.The last two groups mimic the ways of gangsters hoping to spread fear and gain respect. It didn’t always work, as they might meet a one-hell of a loner one day who will beat them into a pulp and they would be unable to mobilise their fictitious gang to protect them.Many petty fights among the junior gang members arose from a gang member being beaten up by an opposing gang in another territory. When the beaten up gang member reported that to their brothers, they would mobilise a section of them to counterattack. There was no investigation and no questions asked. They were mostly short-fused and psychologically hardwired to protect their brothers. Sometimes, the fight could have started out of a petty ‘staring incident’, where gangster A stared at gangster B, and vice versa, that eventually escalated to their smashing each other’s heads up with beer bottles and chairs. People had died out of such ‘staring incidents’.Eventually, the elders of each gang would get together to ‘talk reason’ to resolve the dispute. When they were resolved, the offending party will pay damages in the form of a feast for the offended gang. So there was a code of ethics in the triad world.Besides the island-wide famous gangsters of Lim Ban Lim and Fei Chai (fatty), there were other legendary names we hear in Redhill. One of them, let’s call him ‘Parrot’, a gangster who was later rumoured to have been an undercover detective. My gut feeling is that he might have been just an informer.Some gangsters joined the army, as they were wanted by the police. They would soon rise to the ranks of sergeant or staff-sergeant and would be the company sergeant major to manage National Service soldiers who also had secret society connections. These sergeants would stay inside the camp to avoid police arrest in the civilian world. It was only in the later years that they dared venturing out of the camp compounds. By that time, the police generally left them alone and respected their rank and status in the army.Another, was nicknamed Sam Mah Chai , after the famous Hong Kong opera actor Sun Ma Sze Tsang of that era. He was a fierce fighter during his younger days. I didn’t meet him in the 1960s, but some fifty years later, I met him on a film set where I acted with him.In the scene on set, he played the role of my screen father who is visiting me (my character) in prison. Such irony.He looks like a regular old man in his 70s. He is lean and tanned and mostly polite and quiet. When I asked him, he recounted his younger days as a fighter in gang clashes, his time spent in the Pulau Senang (island) penal colony and the mutiny/riot in 1963. He also showed me the scars on this arms and said that he got them while blocking himself from parangs (machetes) swinging at him. He said that it was a miracle that his arms were not chopped off. He said that he was young and stupid, came from a broken family and found himself in bad company and influence, and all that eventually led him to join the triads.The government eventually clamped down hard on them with the infamous Section 55 of the Penal Code, that gives the police arbitrary powers to arrest and detain secret society members indefinitely without trial.New public places that were built were to be gangster proof - hawker centre tables and chairs were to be fixed to the ground, so that they could not be used as weapons during a fight; and more places were brightly lit up.As a kid, I have seen quite a few fights, gang clashes and riot squads in action. If you were a kid that used to roam around a lot, chances were that you would have gotten into some petty fights just to protect yourself or your friend. Kids toughened up and became streetwise very quickly those days.Photo courtesy of SPH ArchivesChildhoodIn the day, the kampongs were the natural playground for kids. Boys would go there to catch spiders and fish.The boys would catch a certain species of spider that would fight whenever they saw another one of them. This species was found in the bushes near the railway tracks.The trains run from Tanjong Pagar to Malaysia twice a day. Once in the morning and once in the afternoon. The ownership of the railway land was a legacy from the days when Singapore was part of the Malaysian Federation and it was still sovereign land belonging to the Malaysian Government. That means that the Singapore Government had no jurisdiction over it and the Singapore police had no right to enter it for law enforcement. It was a long stretch of Malaysian sovereign land, which Singapore only got back in the year 2011. As a result, a squatter colony flourished on this ‘no-man’s land’ next to the tracks with the nearest squatter roof eave overhang literally a few inches from the side of the train as they whooshed past every day.When there were no trains, the kids would be playing around the tracks. It was a closely knit community where the adults would check that the railway tracks were free from kids loitering around when it was time for the train to pass. I dread to think what would have happened if the railway company had decided to change their time table suddenly. Hundreds of children would be had been overrun and killed. Thankfully that never happened. They probably knew that they could not change the time table.The railway track area was a remote area, so the smaller boys from outside the squatter colony must be vigilant and vanish into the bushes whenever they saw bigger boys approaching from a distance. Often these bigger boys will rob the smaller boys or beat them up. It was the law of the jungle. Singapore was far from the safety levels we have today. Those were the days when everybody would turn into a bully given half a chance. This was extended to politicians, policemen, teachers, nurses, bus conductors,.... etc.To get to the water stream, the boys would need to skirt around a shanty hut built at the edge of the stream. They would have to squeeze through a very narrow path between the house and the water, wide enough only for tiny feet to cross. Inside, there lived a mad woman who would rush out with her long messy hair and full grin whenever she noticed kids passing by. Rumours had it that she used to have a baby, but she died soon after. Thereafter, she lost her sanity.The boys would fish at the upstream of the water where it was clean and clear. They would catch those beautiful guppies with rainbow coloured tails.As it flowed downstream, the water got murky very quickly by the toilet hut discharge that went directly into the water. This water would flow to the drains along Redhill, down to the Alexandra Canal and finally discharging into the Singapore River. It was no wonder why the River was black and stinking like an open sewer, and was nauseating to go near after a hearty meal.However, it was at the downstream that the bigger fishes were found, particularly the big black catfish. As they say, you can't catch many fish in clear waters. Catfish were considered a longkang fish (fish from the drains) in those days. These days, it is an expensive delicacy.And of course there were fighting fish, where bets were made as to which fish would win in a fight. Put together in the same jar, these beautiful fish would waste no time tearing each other apart and both of them will end up with tattered fins.We also flew layangs (kites) with strings laced with powdered glass. The goal was to fly high and cut the strings of other kites off.There was the factor of how much glass you have laced on your strings with and there was the technique of ulo-tarek (release and pull) at the right time. Basically, when the opponent’s kite tightened to cut your string, you slacken your string so that it was hard for them to cut yours. Then, you would surprise the opponent by tightening up quickly, coming down hard and fast on them, and cutting them off.When the string was cut, the kite flew away loose from the owner and eventually came down. On the ground, there would be lots of kids running after the kite, as it will belong to anyone that catches it. Of course fights occur frequently over the argument of who got to the kite first. There, we saw a lot of bullying around with the bigger boys pushing and shoving the smaller boys down to the ground to get the kites.We laced our strings by winding them around two trees that were spaced apart, and then coating them with glue boiled from cow hide, before running finely pound glass over the glue coated strings. Finally, we left them to dry under the hot sun.We made the kites with thin strips of bamboo and tracing paper.There was also this local cherry tree that the boys loved. The cherries are edible and the tree was colloquially called the ba-cherry tree. I just found out from the Internet that its scientific name is Muntingia Calabura, aka Jamaica Cherry or Singapore Cherry.But the boys didn't love it because the cherries tasted good, but more so because they could use them as ammunition for their guns made from pieces of waste wood and rubber bands. They would target at passing school boys and have their white shirts splattered spectacularly cherry red, driving the victims into a rage and the shooters running for their life.Sometimes we would wander further away to places like Pasir Panjang to see the beach, and in one instance, cut long green bamboo poles and drag them home to make pencil stands or piggy banks. Pasir Panjang Road was once a narrow road with villages along either side. The villagers would send their ducks crossing over to the beach to eat the abundant seaweed during low tide, and after the feeding, the ducks would wander back across the road home safely.We also walked through the Redhill attap houses, cross the railway tracks and went upslope to Mount Faber, which was a tourist destination. Once, after a tourist bus came, we were asked to pose with several of them for photos. We were just scrawny little kids in singlets, shorts and slippers, but felt like stars at that moment. One young couple from Canada (I think), told me that they had quit their jobs to see the world. That statement really floored me and kept me thinking about for days. How could it be that the local people in Redhill were struggling to stay alive, while these Caucasian tourists could be gallivanting around the world and even quit their ( I assumed) well paying jobs to do so? I could not fathom that thought and the question stayed etched in my psyche for years to come. Perhaps it had planted a seed in my mind so much so that 13 years later, I set off to live and work in 19 countries across 4 continents over 20 years.With no money in our pockets, we invented our own toys. We turned clothes pegs, bottle caps, abandoned wheels (probably from prams), drink straws, old copper coins, ice-cream sticks, rubber bands, cardboard boxes, wish-bone pieces of wood, rubber tree seeds, Acacia tree fruit, papaya tree stalks,...etc, into toys. We even learned a technique of shooting lallang grass blades at other people.We would slide down grass slopes with cardboard boxes, climb on staircase railings, climb scaffolding, climb trees, jump from the second storey to the ground floor, explore abandoned bunkers, crawl through drain tunnels,...etc. We survived all that!Boys will be boys. We didn't know what the girls did for fun. They were probably doing their homework and playing five-stones at home. They didn't matter to us. We probably thought they were boring. Kids look at the world as one humanity. It was only years later during puberty that we divided the world into two halves and got selfishly interested in only one-half of humanity. LOL.It is sad that all these antics are mostly lost among the kids today. Nowadays, they have virtually merged themselves into their mobile phones and computer games. They have become one with the machine, but not with nature. They do not know how much they have missed and have bypassed the chance of growing up inventing their own games, imagining their own stories and exploring new and dangerous places.SchoolsSchools weren’t so demanding as they are today in Singapore. That said, education standards were still very high and rigorous. For instance, we were taught language grammar and punished for speaking badly. That usually meant physical pain. A whip on the bum or a smack on the head. However, we were not pressured to hate or fear school. Besides, we didn’t only learn from school, we also learned from each other, by living through crises, through empty spaces of time staring into the distance (the blank), by exploring nature first hand and by making mistakes.In contrast, kids today learn by NOT making mistakes, within a strict structure and time table with a highly prescribed curriculum. A lot of spontaneous opportunities for initiative and creativity are lost. Their prime reward is only their scores, that will mark their lives. Or so this is what is expected.During recess time, mothers will bring home-cooked food to feed their kids, although the canteen offered rather inexpensive food. The philosophy was that home-cooked food was healthier and also that they could save some money. Mothers walked 15 to 20 minutes to the school lugging the food along in tinkats to feed their kids. I was always very delighted that my mum brought food for me during recess. It saved me queuing up and also the food was delicious.However, I remember once, my classmate rejected his mum’s food. He said that he was not hungry, but I think it was because he was ashamed of his mum. His mum was a tanned wrinkled woman who could only speak Hokkien. I guessed Hokkien was considered a low-class language at that time. We were even punished for speaking Hokkien in school by overzealous teachers. I bet they didn’t know the impact it had on the kids’ self esteem and the pride of their culture by banning the language in school. This incident had shaken me quite badly till today. I felt sorry for the mother.This is how a tinkat pot looks like.Most of us attended the three English medium schools in the neighbourhood, called Redhill Primary, Bukit Merah North and Bukit Merah South. We studied English as a first language and our ‘mother-tongue’ as the second language. Bukit Merah North offered Mandarin and Malay as second languages, while Bukit Merah South offered Mandarin and Tamil. The three schools shared a single big field that flooded every time there was a heavy rain. When that happened, the boys would be out there in the rain and flood playing in the muddy, murky waters. If you do it often enough, you don’t fall sick doing so.This location is now occupied by Gan Eng Seng School.Those that wanted a Chinese language education studied at Keng Seng Primary, a government-aided school formed by a cluster of attap huts in the kampong. Those who wanted a better Chinese school went to River Valley Government Primary or Tuan Mong High School.There was a wide difference between those from Chinese medium schools and those from English medium schools. Those from Chinese schools were much more disciplined, as it would be, given that Chinese ideograph characters are not phonetic and had to be committed to memory - every stroke and stroke order. And then the need to memorise huge amounts of classical text by heart. They were also prouder to be Chinese and associate themselves with the accomplishment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The extreme ones even dressed like people from the PRC, the guys would wear white short sleeve shirt and blue pants with basketball shoes made in China and the girls would sport pleated long braids, white blouse, pleated blue or black skirt, white socks and black shoes.I guessed this must have scared Lee Kuan Yew, as by 1978, he closed all Chinese medium schools, so that we could be safer from the Communists. China at that time, was sponsoring the insurgent Communist Party of Malaya (CPM). Lee also started a speak Mandarin Campaign to take away dialects, and cut the clans of their following and the triads that thrived on them.Mandarin language teachers those days were mostly bullies at heart. They would intimidate the children, insult them and despise them for not being able to speak their mother-tongue, which strictly was not true because most of our parents then could not speak Mandarin. It was the language of the Northerners, get it?! We in the South spoke Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese and other languages (which they downgraded into ‘dialects’).Actually, many teachers were bullies at heart those days. Maybe it was the product of the times. A time of turmoil, uncertainty and lack of good social order demanded everyone to take the upper-hand given half a chance.Teachers would smack us on our heads with their hands, with a heavy book, smack us with wooden rulers and canes; throw chalk at us, throw dusters at us; make us kiss the blackboard; pull our ears hard; make us stand outside the class, stand on our chair or stand on our desk…etc. It was also no use complaining to mum and dad, as the first thing that mothers would say when they meet teachers was to remind the teacher that they are to beat their child if they were disobedient. In other words, parents gave teachers a blank cheque to beat up their kids if they were naughty.By the time we reached secondary schools, we had Chinese dictation tests. It was from here that many of us had nightmares about such tests for many years to come, deep into adulthood. In Chinese dictation tests, the invigilator does not read the text while the candidates write. You only hear ‘start’ and ‘stop’, and in between, you are to regurgitate one or two pages of text from the book, word for word. Hundreds of hours were taken away from our play time to memorise texts for such tests. Such tests were later discontinued. Lee Kuan Yew once commented that it was insane.For those in English medium schools, we also studied Bahasa Kebangsaan (National Language), which is Malay.We spoke English in class, but Chinese dialects and Malay outside, but still, we didn’t have Singlish. It was not born yet.Besides the academics, Lee Kuan Yew also started Pesta Sukan (Sports festival) in 1964 as a series of friendly sport competitions. This is to build a rugged society, as he knew that with a population living from hand to mouth, sports and physical fitness was never a priority. Many sports amenities were built with very cheap entry fees and I started going swimming at Queenstown Swimming Pool, the third public swimming pool in Singapore, about three kilometres away.As a result, I also became an all rounder athlete. I represented my school in Athletics 100 metre and 200 metre sprint, 4 x 100 metre sprint, Long Jump, Triple Jump, High Jump, Basketball and Softball. I had a whale of a time with my extra-curricular activities.This campaign to build a rugged society was very successful and timely, especially in 1968 when we had to build our own army rapidly when the British troops withdrew from Singapore.Band on the RunThe 1960s was also the golden age for Singapore music. This bolstered by the British Army which was stationed in Singapore and they had bands playing in their Officers’ Mess during weekends. Local bands like The Quest, The Stylers and The Shadows were very popular among the expatriates and English speaking Singaporeans. These Singaporeans were mostly Eurasians, Peranakans and the more Anglicised Indians, Malays and Chinese. Many were second or third generation Singapore born citizens and a visible number of them were from Catholic schools and good government schools, where proper English was spoken.This was enough for Radio Television Singapore (RTS) to start the first Talentime (1967/68). Three teenage girls from Raffles Girls Secondary, called The Tidbits, won the first prize and went on to cut their first albums with RCA/Cosdel.Western music brought along Western Pop culture of long hair, bell bottom pants and flora motif slim fit shirts with big collars for men. Girls sported straight long hair and loose blouses with flowery designs. There was also a more decadent side of substance abuse of ganja (marijuana), cocaine and MX pills.The authorities knew they had to stop this spread of decadent Western culture and imposed an Anti-Long Hair Campaign, where long haired males would be served last at government counters. Western pop bands spotting long hair coming into Singapore would have to cut their hair, or be turned back. Urine tests were also conducted in random nightclub raids, army camps and schools.Students in schools were subjected to regular long hair checks and repeat offenders would have their hair cut on the spot by the discipline masters. Teachers would cold heartedly pull the side burns of boys that were too long and have them grimacing in pain. Some discipline masters would cut a gap in the middle of the hair, so that the offenders would be forced to cut their hair short, GI-style, making offenders looking like a fool to their friends. However, fashion comes and goes. What was silly in those days looks cool today. So, there is no meaning to anything other than the meaning we attach to it.Lee Kuan Yew was a strong man well known for his draconian methods. He knew that if he wanted to have the industrialisation plan working, he would need healthy young men to work and not run the risks of them taking on the laissez-faire hippie lifestyle of sex, drugs and Rock-and-Roll. He violated many aspects of human rights, but he did get the industrialisation plan going.Getai in the 60s. Photograph courtesy of Mr Aaron Tan, Lex(s) Entertainment Productions.However, the majority of Redhill residents were not that hip and were more into local Hokkien, Cantonese, Teochew and Mandarin pop songs, with predictable kitschy cha-cha beats and electric guitar melodies. The Chinese religious leaders saw that and staged Gotai (歌台) to entertain their deities and worshippers. Some local singers got famous through this route. Such Gotai persists till this day.One of my brother’s friend, Wu Gang, won a record label contest and went on to be a local star. He had his educational certificates left in our house for safe keeping, in case his attap house home caught fire - quite common those days. He was a top singer in the local scene in the 1960s and 1970s. Thereafter, he went to the UK to further his studies in fine arts and returned to start his own graphics design business. Upon graduation, he came to our place a few times but thereafter I didn’t get to meet him.Some forty years later, I got to work for a Chapman University student film project called “Last Wish”. It is about the mending of relationship between a singer-celebrity son and his father at his death bed. I played the role of the father, Sean Goh played the role of the son and the director of the film was his actual sister, Jean Goh, a final year student of Chapman.It was only a few days ago, at the time of writing, that I found out that Sean and Jean are the children of Wu Gang. Sean and Jean sing a lot and Jean won a national Mandarin singing competition in 2016.Small world.Small IslandIn 1960, Singapore was 250 sq miles with a population of 1.6 million. The people had big families and were reproducing fast, which prompted the government to start the Family Planning Campaign in 1960. The message was “Stop At Two [kids]”. Many mocked this to mean “Stop at two o’clock at night”. Mothers that had their third kid onwards were pressured to sterilise, or have their kids’ priority for schools….etc, placed last. The Campaign was an outstanding success. The average number of babies per woman went down from 6 in 1960, to 1.2 in 2016.In the 1960s, there was no MRT, no highways and roads were narrow and single lane. Accessibility from one end of the island to the other by car might take a few hours. During Chinese New Year, my parents would hire an old Austin car to pack all of us in to go from Redhill to Upper Serangoon to visit my grandmother. The distance was merely 7 miles apart, but took us the whole morning to get there, with the traffic grinding to a snail’s pace with the festive crowd. One of my sisters would have to stop the car to come out to throw up, as she could not take the long hours confined in the heat and humidity in the car. The same journey today would take 35 minutes by MRT.So Singapore may have been a small island then, but people did not travel the same kind of distances every day. People barely wander more than 2 mile radius from their village hut. They would frequent their village regular coffeeshop to listen to dialect broadcasts on cable radio Redifussion, frequent the People’s Association’s Community Centres to watch TV, or visit their local open air cinema. They probably made yearly or bi-yearly trips to the City to replenish groceries and essentials, or visit a ‘far-away’ relative.Perhaps that was how those runaway tontine leaders, illegal bookies, unmarried mothers, shamed members of families, banished gang leaders, …etc could vanish and still remain unnoticed in Singapore for years. Those days, there were no Internet, mobile phones, computers, fax machines; and very few people had line telephones and televisions.SummaryRedhill Close for all its good, bad and ugly, warts and all, was a close-knit community where everyone knew everyone. It was where gossip and news took no time to get around. Neighbours would visit each other anytime. Often, those without TV would go over to those apartments with TVs to enjoy the evening's programme. Those that lived along common corridors and had televisions in the living room would leave their windows open, so that neighbours could stand by the corridor and enjoy the evening's programme.Mothers would often leave their kids to their neighbour's care for an hour or two, while they made their trips to the wet market; and they would return that goodwill when asked upon.Kids mature very quickly those days, as they were assigned family duties very early in their life. By the age of 16 years old, he or she would have gone through thick and thin with the family and had helped their parents bring up seven other younger siblings, taken care of a grandma and laboured through the drudgery of housework. His younger siblings say of age 14 years old or below, would in-turn be in-charged and responsible for the well-being and safety of those even younger. So there was a strict hierarchy in the family, where the older was responsible for the younger ones. The younger ones got taken care of and did not have many duties, but they had to obey their elders.Kids that grew out of communities in the 1960s learned to be self-reliant, tough and empathetic to the needs of others. And so when they were older, they would partake in protests and strikes against bus fare hikes, price rises or unfair dismissals. Though those were compounded by the fuel of anti-Imperialist and socialist movements.At 16 years old, some boys would become merchant sailors earning about $1,000 a month, a princely sum at that time, considering that an accountancy graduate in 1968 earned $400 a month. Others joined the army and got trained and toughened up to be operationally-ready very quickly by Israeli war veterans. All that so that they can contribute to the family’s coffers and pull everyone out of poverty and hardship.That was life around 50 years ago. Most residents were living under the poverty line by today's standards. Yet, we were rich in human spirit and mostly happy. I saw more smiles then, than I do now in Singapore as a progressive modern metropolis. The oldest man I knew was never lonely and the ugliest woman got married and had many kids.My mother had six kids when she was 30 years old. Nowadays, many girls 30 years old or older, have no kids, nor are they married. And yet some others in this age range are still in their cutesy narcissistic online fantasies with aspirations to be social network personalities. I am not judging what is right or wrong, but just saying the way it is. While everyone is free to make their own choices, there will always be consequences arising from those choices.Some people say that times have changed and that "policemen those days wore shorts". But I still feel that somethings will always be the same. Love has remained the great constant over centuries of history. Love never changed. With the onslaught of media influences and peer pressures, we ought to ask, "What would Love do in a given situation?"Thereafter around 1969, the attap houses were demolished to build Housing Development Board (HDB) flats to accommodate ethnic Indians resettled from the Silat Road and Kampong Bahru enclaves, due to the extension of Jalan Bukit Merah (road). Several years later, the little red hill, where the estate got its name from, was flattened to build what is now Bukit Merah Central (“bukit merah” means "red hill" in Malay).This year, the estate itself is due for urban renewal. It will be demolished and replaced by closely packed tall modern blocks, with multi-storey car parks identical to many other uniform-looking estates in Singapore. The existing residents will have the option to move to replacement flats built nearby around Henderson Road.Where do we go from here?Singapore has made huge economic strides by any standards. This is because there was a leadership that cared and a population that trusted their leaders and worked hard to achieve their dreams. They were simple, but noble dreams: Merely to earn enough money to bring up healthy and moral children that will do well in school, in an environment without war, riots or violence.Times have changed people. It is not like this today. With progress, comes comfort, risk aversion and self-centredness. Many people have forgotten how it was like to be really poor. The younger ones have never experienced it. Leaders pay lip-service to it, fall into group-think and are petrified to lose their million dollar jobs.High salaries may preempt corruption, but they also numb sensitivities to human values, reducing us to mere digits of equivalent dollars. It distorts the perception of life, since nature does not have money; and that trees and animals grow without the need for money.While a million dollar salary is a lot of money to most mortals, it is now perceived by the elites as an entitlement and that their family will suffer if there are minor adjustments made to that salary. Or that anyone earning half a million dollars and below are considered mediocre, implying that money is the prime factor for measuring a human being. Or ignorantly assuming that it is common for every family to own two cars.So it is evident that the citizens’ struggles with the very basic day-to-day issues are not in the minds of the elite. Issues that are as basic as paying for electricity and water, apartment rent, school fees, costs of text books,…etc. The elites generally leave these issues to somebody else lower down in the hierarchy to sort out, or to sweep under the carpet.Bureaucrats across the ranks, hired for their brilliant minds, second guess their political bosses and window dress numbers to look good, maintain status quo and keep their jobs.Those with alternative views choose to remain silent to keep their jobs and their above market salaries. Their biggest conflict they have now is with their true selves: The true self that is crying out to live truthfully.So this was how life was like in Singapore in the 1960s and how it contrasts with life today. The hard times of old made us strong, but by now, those values are largely eroded and relegated to the scrapbooks of history.Still, I heard that a prominent politician hails from Redhill and so I wish that this son of Redhill will bring back the spirit we once had and pull us out of this slum of moral decay.If you like this post, please share it so that more people, especially youngsters, will know how life was in the same space, but a in different time in the 1960s.If you would like to read about how life is in contemporary Singapore, including some funny and ironical bits, you may like to read:How is living in Singapore like?What do the people in Singapore do that is different than the rest of the world?Thank you for reading this far. It is a long article and I hope it is well worth your time.

To make our Foreign Trade Policy have a lasting effect on International Trade following steps must be considered by MoC&I and DGFT on an urgent basis in consultation with various other Govt. departments.# Foreign Trade Policy should be made in common man language easy to understand and to be followed easily by everyone with no difficulty by all business communities as a whole. It should not be made so complex at every stage, the business community requires some professional assistance / guidance. It should be made for the fixed duration for all policies with an objective of with minimum or no changes required at a later date through Trade Notices / Circulars.# Star Export House status Export Turnover limit for consideration should be reduced so more and more exporters are covered to avail of certain benefits announced by the Government of India.# List of Restricted / Prohibited Goods should be reduced to the bare minimum to encourage exports, if goods are allowed to import for re-export, licenses for such goods should be issued on an urgent basis.# Time Limit for various Application approvals should be reduced such as for (IEC 1 working day), (Advance Authorisation where input / output norms are notified, Advance Authorisation for annual requirement and DFIA 2 working day), (Fixation of Input / Output Norms 30 working day), (Issuance of EPCG License 3 working day), (Acceptance of Bank Guarantee / Legal Undertaking 2 working day), (Export Obligation discharge certificate of Advance authorisation/DFIA 7 working day), (Release of BG / LUT 10 working day), (Issuance / renewal Star Status Export house certificate 2 working day)and miscellaneous work with DGFT depending on nature should not take more than 5 working day.# Foreign Trade Policy should be made simple with the minimum paper requirement or should move to paperless work culture. ANF Forms should be made simple enough to file them with ease and proper guidance for this should be provided on DGFT Portal. Any clarification / guidance required to fill these ANF Forms respective officials’ help should be made available with ease. DGFT – Learn Portal should be more informative and user friendly in providing information for how to fill the specific applications (ANF) and what all steps are required to file a correct application on the portal with supporting documents which may be asked at a later date by respective officials to process the application without seeking any help and guidance. This will help our youth to develop skills and skill India initiative announced by the PM of India and certainly will create some employment opportunities for youth. For applicants or any knowledge seeker, how to file a particular application on DGFT portal, guidance / steps can be uploaded / shared on youtube for the knowledge of everyone.# MoC&I and DGFT Portal should work regularly by 24*7. They are being closed every now and then from the back end with petty excuses with no intimation in advance to the users & if they have to be closed, proper communication and justification should be provided to users. Routine and regular maintenance should be done on weekly holidays and preferably after office hours.# SEZs / EOUs Act – Sunset clause ending on 31/03/2021 may kindly be extended for another 5 financial years to bring more FDI and Domestic investment for the betterment of our economy / GDP and to improve our present Pandemic COVID 19 conditions. Sunset clause doubts should be cleared at the earliest by MoC&I for the betterment of international trade. If Direct / Indirect Tax benefits are not available or not being extended for the new units then why should the business community should come forward with a smile and invest in the new units of SEZs and EOUs.# Permission for Sale of Goods and services for SEZs / EOUs units may kindly be permitted on Duty-Free supply to DTA on duty forgone basis especially products which are being imported and our SEZs / EOUs units will be in a far better position to utilise their installed production capacity and workforce effectively. They should be allowed to make sales in DTA on payment of duty equivalent to duty forgone on the raw material used in the manufacturing of finished goods sold in DTA market on a similar pattern of EOUs or on levy equalisation duty concept to neutralise the advantages for SEZs units’ vis-à-vis DTA units.# Acceptance of Bank Guarantee / Legal Undertaking / Bonds should not be asked from the new SEZs / EOUs units at the time of their registration, rather they should be asked to submit at the time for the start of their export transactions as this will help them to ease their working capital stress.# MEIS / SEIS Benefit limits may kindly be extended for the forthcoming Foreign Trade Policy to encourage our export community young dynamic entrepreneurs. The Government of India (MoC&I) should request more allocation of funds from the Ministry of Finance. MEIS / SEIS portal should be opened (Period ending FTP 2015-20) with the period extension at the earliest to enable exporters to file their applications as price factors have already been discounted in export price of products and services by the overseas customer. There should be no cap limit for MEIS / SEIS to claim benefits by the respective exporters. For some reason, if the window is being closed beyond the control of MoC&I & DGFT, then the period of opening for the same should be specified when it will be functional to file the applications.# RoDTEP committee should amend their policy that all SEZs / EOUs / MTT’s units (Manufacturer / Service provider / Traders) are also entitled to claim benefits under this scheme with more allocation of funds under this noble RoDTEP scheme.# Integration of SEZs portal online with ICEGATE for smooth hassle-free clearance of goods from customs at the earliest. SEZs / EOUs units should be exempted from payment of charges for SEZ online for all transactions on import and export as STP / NSTP / EHTP / BTP / DTA exporters / importers do not pay any charges on their transactions.# Filling Bill of Entry for Import or Export documents / Softex Forms or any other form on NSDL portal every unit from SEZs / EOUs has to pay minimum charges for filing of these documents which is not in case of STP / NSTP or DTA unit. Such charges affect the bottom-line of the SEZs unit concern. This practice must be discontinued.# EOUs units deserve better treatment from the Revenue Departments as they are always established in the far away from cities in the backward area to help the rural economy. EOUs units established under SEZ Act, and facilities for such units as required Govt. approvals / customs clearance should be made available to near their operations or at District Headquarters of the respective state. Direct and Indirect Tax benefits being given to SEZs units should be made available to EOUs units with another 5 years extension per the new proposed Foreign Trade Policy. EOUs Units should be treated at par with all applicable benefits available to SEZs units.# Import procurement certificate process should be simplified for EOUs units and the unit undertaking should be accepted by respective officials.# MoC&I should instruct to hold UAC meetings on a fortnightly basis not once on a monthly basis as precious time is lost to obtain various approvals and export from the unit to overseas valuable customers should not suffer.# GST - ITC refund process should be simplified and made easily available to SEZs / EOUs Units with time limit fixation after submission of the application of refund to the department for processing at the earliest with the allocation of more funds from MoF with consultation MoC&I.# Endorsement of documents for local procurement (DTA) in SEZs is very time consuming and units have to bear certain unaccounted expenses which cannot be expressed in the words and this practice should be discontinued with immediate effect and SEZs units undertaking should be accepted for all reasons. In and out processes of any material from any SEZs should be made simple and easy to follow.# If any SEZs units sell their services or goods inside India, then they have to take the sale money in foreign currency, so Buyer has to approach his bank and arrange Dollars (Foreign Currency) to make payments by paying INR in which the Indian Banks takes their commission and service charges and then the buyer has to pay concern SEZ units in Dollars (Foreign currency) and then SEZ units have to deposit these Dollar (Foreign Currency into their Bank A/c to convert them into INR, in which they also have to pay and bear commission / bank charges to their respective bank. It means our process is such where buyer and seller both are at the receiving end because of the system process being followed by us and implemented in India. Developer & SEZs officials should look into this matter and seek required help from RBI / DGFT to provide some relief to SEZs units on this. As both buyer and seller are losing on exchange conversion.# Depreciation process and its method on retirement or sale or transfer of goods from SEZs / EOUs units’ rules should be simplified. Assets life once completed and with zero depreciation cost in books and per bill of entry (import) should be allowed by customs to discharge with the minimum process and on an undertaking from the unit with the submission of supportive papers. Production Scrap / General scrap from SEZs / EOUs / Developers permission should be easily granted and available on request with the minimum process work involved.# MIS reporting should be consolidated with the filling of all reports at one place to utilise resources better and economical way. The same information should not be asked to submit with the developer as well to SEZs Zone Commissioner as the case may be like MPR, SERF & APR. Units audited Balance sheet, Profit & Loss A/c statement should be accepted for all practical purposes.

Start Business: A Step-by-Step GuideTalk to any entrepreneur or small business owner and you'll quickly learn that starting a business requires a lot of work. An idea doesn't become a business without effort.Some budding entrepreneurs understand the effort necessary to create a business, but they might not be familiar with the many steps required to launch a business venture. If you're willing to put in the effort to build a business, you're going to want to know the steps needed to reach your goals.1. Refine your idea.If you're thinking about starting a business, you likely already have an idea of what you want to sell, or at least the market you want to enter. Do a quick search for existing companies in your chosen industry. Learn what current brand leaders are doing and figure out how you can do it better. If you think your business can deliver something other companies don't (or deliver the same thing, only faster and cheaper), you've got a solid idea and are ready to create a business plan.Define your "why.""In the words of Simon Sinek, 'always start with why,'" Glenn Gutek, CEO of Awake Consulting and Coaching, told Business News Daily. "It is good to know why you are launching your business. In this process, it may be wise to differentiate between [whether] the business serves a personal why or a marketplace why. When your why is focused on meeting a need in the marketplace, the scope of your business will always be larger than a business that is designed to serve a personal need."Consider franchising.Another option is to open a franchise of an established company. The concept, brand following and business model are already in place; all you need is a good location and the means to fund your operation.Brainstorm your business name.Regardless of which option you choose, it's vital to understand the reasoning behind your idea. Stephanie Desaulniers, owner of Business by Dezign and former director of operations and women's business programs at Covation Center, cautions entrepreneurs from writing a business plan or brainstorming a business name before nailing down the idea's value.Clarify your target customers.Desaulniers said too often people jump into launching their business without spending time to think about who their customers will be and why would want to buy from them or hire them."You need to clarify why you want to work with these customers – do you have a passion for making people's lives easier," Desaulniers said. "Or enjoy creating art to bring color to their world? Identifying these answers helps clarify your mission. Third, you want to define how you will provide this value to your customers and how to communicate that value in a way that they are willing to pay."During the ideation phase, you need to iron out the major details. If the idea isn't something you're passionate about or if there's not a market for your creation, it might be time to brainstorm other ideas.Key takeaway: To refine your business idea, identify your "why", your target customers and your business name.2. Write a business plan.Once you have your idea in place, you need to ask yourself a few important questions: What is the purpose of your business? Who are you selling to? What are your end goals? How will you finance your startup costs? These questions can be answered in a well-written business plan.A lot of mistakes are made by new businesses rushing into things without pondering these aspects of the business. You need to find your target customer base. Who is going to buy your product or service? If you can't find evidence that there's a demand for your idea, then what would be the point?Conduct market research.Conducting thorough market research on your field and demographics of potential clientele is an important part of crafting a business plan. This involves conducting surveys, holding focus groups, and researching SEO and public data.Market research helps you understand your target customer – their needs, preferences and behavior – as well as your industry and competitors. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) recommends gathering demographic information and conducting a competitive analysis to better understand opportunities and limitations within your market.The best small businesses have products or services that are differentiated from the competition. This has a significant impact on your competitive landscape and allows you to convey unique value to potential customers. A guide to conducting market research can be found on our sister site, business.com.Consider an exit strategy.It's also a good idea to consider an exit strategy as you compile your business plan. Generating some idea of how you'll eventually exit the business forces you to look to the future."Too often, new entrepreneurs are so excited about their business and so sure everyone everywhere will be a customer that they give very little, if any, time to show the plan on leaving the business," said Josh Tolley CEO of both Shyft Capital and Kavana."When you board an airplane, what is the first thing they show you? How to get off of it. When you go to a movie, what do they point out before the feature begins to play? Where the exits are. Your first week of kindergarten, they line up all the kids and teach them fire drills to exit the building. Too many times I have witnessed business leaders that don't have three or four pre-determined exit routes. This has led to lower company value and even destroyed family relationships."A business plan helps you figure out where your company is going, how it will overcome any potential difficulties and what you need to sustain it. Check out our full guide to writing a business plan, and when you're ready to put pen to paper, these free templates can help.[See related story: The Best Business Plan Software]Key takeaway: Before writing your business plan, conduct market research and consider your exit strategies.3. Assess your finances.Starting any business has a price, so you need to determine how you're going to cover those costs. Do you have the means to fund your startup, or will you need to borrow money? If you're planning to leave your current job to focus on your business, do you have money put away to support yourself until you make a profit? It's best to find out how much your startup costs will be.Many startups fail because they run out of money before turning a profit. It's never a bad idea to overestimate the amount of startup capital you need, as it can be a while before the business begins to bring in sustainable revenue.Perform a break-even analysis.One way you can determine how much money you need is to perform a break-even analysis. This is an essential element of financial planning that helps business owners determine when their company, product or service will be profitable.The formula is simple.Fixed Costs / (Average Price – Variable Costs) = Break-Even PointEvery entrepreneur should use this formula as a tool because it informs you about the minimum performance your business must achieve to avoid losing money. Furthermore, it helps you understand exactly where your profits come from, so you can set production goals accordingly.Here are the three most common reasons to conduct a break-even analysis:Determine profitability. This is generally every business owner's highest interest. Ask yourself: How much revenue do I need to generate to cover all my expenses? Which products or services turn a profit and which ones are sold at a loss?/Price a product or service. When most people think about pricing, they consider how much their product costs to create and how competitors are pricing their products. Ask yourself: What are the fixed rates, what are the variable costs, and what is the total cost? What is the cost of any physical goods and what is the cost of labor?Analyze the data. What volumes of goods or services do you have to sell to be profitable? Ask yourself: How can I reduce my overall fixed costs? How can I reduce the variable costs per unit? How can I improve sales?Watch your expenses.Don't overspend when starting a business. Understand the types of purchases that make sense for your business and avoid overspending on fancy new equipment that won't help you reach your business goals. Monitor your business expenses to ensure you are staying on track."A lot of startups tend to spend money on unnecessary things," said Jean Paldan, founder and CEO of Rare Form New Media. "We worked with a startup that had two employees but spent a huge amount on office space that would fit 20 people. They also leased a professional high-end printer that was more suited for a team of 100 (it had keycards to track who was printing what and when). Spend as little as possible when you start and only on the things that are essential for the business to grow and be a success. Luxuries can come when you're established."Consider your funding options.Startup capital for your business can come from a variety of means. The best way to acquire funding for your business depends on several factors, including creditworthiness, the amount needed and available options.Business loans. If you need financial assistance, a commercial loan through a bank is a good starting point, although these are often difficult to secure. If you are unable to take out a bank loan, you can apply for a small business loan through the Small Business Administration( SBA) or an alternative lender. [See related story: Best Alternative Small Business Loans]Business grants. Business grants are similar to loans; however, they do not need to be paid back. Business grants are typically very competitive, and come with stipulations that the business must meet to be considered. When trying to secure a small business grant, look for ones that are uniquely specific to your situation. Options include minority-owned business grants, grants for women-owned businesses and government grants.Investors. Startups requiring significant funding upfront may want to bring on an investor. Investors can provide several million dollars or more to a fledgling company, with the expectation that the backers will have a hands-on role in running your business.Crowdfunding. Alternatively, you could launch an equity crowdfunding campaign to raise smaller amounts of money from multiple backers. Crowdfunding has helped numerous companies in recent years, and there are dozens of reliable crowdfunding platforms designed for different types of businesses.You can learn more about each of these capital sources and more in our guide to startup finance options.Editor's note: Looking for a small business loan? Fill out the questionnaire below to have our vendor partners contact you about your needs.Choose the right business bank.When choosing the right business bank, size matters. Marcus Anwar, co-founder of OhMy.Canada recommends smaller community banks because they are in tune with the local market conditions and will work with you based on your overall business profile and character."They're unlike big banks that look at your credit score and will be more selective to loan money to small businesses," Anwar said. "Not only that, but small banks want to build a personal relationship with you and ultimately help you if you run into problems and miss a payment. Another good thing about smaller banks is that decisions are made at the branch level, which can be much quicker than big banks where decisions are made at a higher level."Anwar believes that when choosing a bank for your business, you should ask yourself these questions:What is important to me?Do I want to build a close relationship with a bank that's willing to help me in any way possible?Do I want to be just another bank account like big banks will view me as?Ultimately, choosing the right bank for your business comes down to the needs of your business. Writing down your banking needs can help narrow your focus to what you should be looking for. Schedule meetings with various banks and ask questions about how they work with small businesses to find the best bank for your business. [See related story: Business Bank Account Checklist: Documents You'll Need]Key takeaway: Financially, you will want to perform a break-even analysis, consider your expenses and funding options and choose the right bank.4. Determine your legal business structure.Before you can register your company, you need to decide what kind of entity it is. Your business structure legally affects everything from how you file your taxes to your personal liability if something goes wrong.Sole proprietorship. If you own the business entirely by yourself and plan to be responsible for all debts and obligations, you can register for a sole proprietorship. Be warned that this route can directly affect your personal credit.Partnership. Alternatively, a business partnership, as its name implies, means that two or more people are held personally liable as business owners. You don't have to go it alone if you can find a business partner with complementary skills to your own. It's usually a good idea to add someone into the mix to help your business flourish.Corporation. If you want to separate your personal liability from your company's liability, you may want to consider forming one of several types of corporations (e.g., S corporation, C corporation, B corporation). Although each type of corporation is subject to different guidelines, this type of legal structure generally makes a business a separate entity from its owners, and, therefore, corporations can own property, assume liability, pay taxes, enter contracts, sue and be sued like any other individual."Corporations, especially C-corporations, are especially suitable for new businesses that plan on 'going public' or seeking funding from venture capitalists in the near future," said Deryck Jordan, managing attorney at Jordan Counsel.Limited liability company. One of the most common structures for small businesses, however, is the limited liability company (LLC). This hybrid structure has the legal protections of a corporation while allowing for the tax benefits of a partnership.Ultimately, it is up to you to determine which type of entity is best for your current needs and future business goals. It's important to learn about the various legal business structures that are available. If you're struggling to make up your mind, it's not a bad idea to discuss the decision with a business or legal adviser.Key takeaway: Choose a legal structure like a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a corporation, or an LLC.5. Register with the government and IRS.You will need to acquire a variety of business licenses before you can legally operate your business. For example, you need to register your business with federal, state and local governments. There are several documents you must prepare before registering.Articles of incorporation and operating agreementsTo become an officially recognized business entity, you must register with the government. Corporations need an "articles of incorporation" document, which includes your business name, business purpose, corporate structure, stock details and other information about your company. Similarly, some LLCs will need to create an operating agreement.Doing Business As (DBA)If you don't have articles of incorporation or an operating agreement, you will need to register your business name, which can be your legal name, a fictitious DBA name (if you are the sole proprietor), or the name you've come up with for your company. You may also want to take steps to trademark your business name for extra legal protection.Most states require that you get a DBA. If you're in a general partnership or a proprietorship operating under a fictitious name, you may need to apply for a DBA certificate. It's best to contact or visit your local county clerk's office and ask about specific requirements and fees. Generally, there is a registration fee involved.Employer Identification Number (EIN)After you register your business, you may need to get an Employer Identification Number from the IRS. While this is not required for sole proprietorships with no employees, you may want to apply for one anyway to keep your personal and business taxes separate, or simply to save yourself the trouble later if you decide to hire someone. The IRS has provided a checklist to determine whether you will require an EIN to run your business. If you do need an EIN, you can register online for free.Income tax formsYou also need to file certain forms to fulfill your federal and state income tax obligations. The forms you need are determined by your business structure. A complete list of the forms each type of entity will need can be found on SBA's website. You will need to check your state's website for information on state-specific and local tax obligations."You might be tempted to wing it with a PayPal account and social media platform, but if you start with a proper foundation, your business will have fewer hiccups to worry about in the long run," said Natalie Pierre-Louis, licensed attorney and owner of NPL Consulting.Federal, state, and local licenses and permitsSome businesses may also require federal, state or local licenses and permits to operate. The best place to obtain a business license is at your local city hall. You can then use the SBA's database to search for licensing requirements by state and business type.Businesses and independent contractors in certain trades are required to carry professional licenses. One example of a professional business license is a commercial driver's license (CDL). Individuals with a CDL are allowed to operate certain types of vehicles, such as buses, tank trucks and tractor-trailers. A CDL is divided into three classes: Class A, Class B and Class C.You should also check with your city and state to find out if you need a seller's permit that authorizes your business to collect sales tax from your customers. A seller's permit goes by numerous names, including resale permit, resell permit, permit license, reseller permit, resale ID, state tax ID number, reseller number, reseller license permit or certificate of authority.It's important to note that these requirements and names vary from state to state. You can register for a seller's permit through the state government website of the state(s) you're doing business in.Jordan says that not all businesses need to collect sales tax (or obtain a seller's permit)."For example, New York sales tax generally is not required for the sale of most services (such as professional services, education, and capital improvements to real estate), medicine or food for home consumption," Jordan said. "So, for example, if your business only sells medicine, you do not need a New York seller's permit. But New York sales tax must be collected in conjunction with the sale of new tangible personal goods, utilities, telephone service, hotel stays, and food and beverages (in restaurants)."Key takeaway: Register key documents like articles of incorporation or an operating agreement, a DBA, an EIN, income tax forms and other applicable licenses and permits.6. Purchase an insurance policy.It might slip your mind as something you'll "get around to" eventually, but purchasing the right insurance for your business is an important step that should happen before you officially launch.