According to the official biodata of Her Majesty Raja Zarith Sofiah, Queen of Malaysia as released by the Royal Press Office of Istana Negara Kuala Lumpur that Her Majesty was born on 14 August, 1959 at Batu Gajah Hospital in Perak. Her Majesty is the second daughter and the third child of the late Sultan of Perak, Paduka Seri Sultan Idris Shah II, and the late Raja Perempuan Perak, Muzwin Almarhum Raja Dato' Sri Ariff Shah. Batu Gajah - the name means Elephant Rock - has seen colourful times & now back in the limelights.
In the late 19th century, it was the centre of a tin mining boom. Immigrants from China had started mining in the 1820s and later British companies muscled in, introducing huge tin dredges that the Chinese miners found hard to compete with. In 1884, the authorities made Batu Gajah the capital of the Kinta District, richer in tin than anywhere in the country. Large government offices were built. The town became a prosperous community, and the country grew to become the world's largest tin producers. (peraktourism.gov)
Many old buildings are still standing at Changkat Road areas, the old European part of the town. Attractive buildings included the administrative offices and Batu Gajah Hospital. The hospital is surely one of Malaysia's oldest hospitals, and evolves the feel of bygone days with its aged wooden colonnades, intricately chequered floors and leafy compound.
The boom of Batu Gajah lasted for decades. Gradually, however, nearby Ipoh grew in size and importance, shifting the focus way. When Malaysia's tin boom ended in the 1980s, Batu Gajah's glory days were over. Hopefully, with the year long Visit Perak 2024 programmes focusing on Ecological Tourism and real groundbreaking concept ‘Rehabilitation & Conservation Tourism’ more domestic & foreign tourists will visit Batu Gajah. A homecoming royal visit by Her Majesty Raja Zarith Sofiah, Queen of Malaysia will sure boost it up.
Submit your #BackInTime stories that revolve around the theme of nostalgia and stand a chance to win prizes worth up to RM8,000! Find out how you can participate here.
Zulkifly Baharom is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.
