Kulai

This article is about a Malaysian town. For a place within municipal limits of Mangalore City Corporation, refer to Kulai(Suratkal).

Kulai 古来 كورالا
File:Kulaiskyline.jpg
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  Kulai, the turtle town.
Motto(s):  'Cemerlang, Sejahtera' (English: 'Excellence, Peaceful')
Country	Malaysia
State	Johor
Local Authorities	Majlis Perbandaran Kulai (MPKu, Kulai Municipal Council)
Establishment	1890
Sub-urban status	2004
Government
• Yang diPertua Majlis	Ismail Karim
Population
• Total	159,427(within MPKu Control Area) (4th)
Time zone	UTC+8 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	Not observed
Website	http://www.johordt.gov.my/mpku

Kulai (simplified Chinese: 古来; traditional Chinese: 古來; pinyin: gulái), is a town in the Kulaijaya district of Johor, Malaysia. The town is 29 km from Johor Bahru city and 8 km from Skudai.

Administration

The new landmark of Kulai Town centre. A better service supply for Kulai municipal resident

Kulai is administered by the Kulai Municipal Council (Majlis Perbandaran Kulai) which is earlier known as the Kulai District Council.

And Kulai sub-district was upgraded to full-fledged district since 1st of January 2008 and renamed as Kulaijaya District.

Future Development

Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman said the state government will upgrade Kulai, now a sub-district of Johor Bahru, into a full-fledged district in 2008.

“We are looking for a suitable site to build the administrative centre," he said.

He said plans were under way to provide both Ledang and Kulai with all the necessary district facilities.

The Administrative Centre of Kulai District was proposed to be constructed in Indahpura, in the New Town Centre of Kulai.

Economy

The locals are mostly involved in the agriculture sector, particularly in the oil palm and rubber estates surrounding the town. Many of the people work in small retail shops, which are located along the trunk road. Kulai has the first settlement of FELDA's (Federal Land Development Agency) oil palm plantation in the country - FELDA Taib Andak, which was launched by the second Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Abdul Razak. Kulai is still one of the main producers of palm oil in the country due to its numerous oil palm plantations. Kulai also exports fresh vegetables to Singapore on a daily basis.

The economy of Kulai has improved with numerous factories being set up in both Kulai and Senai. There are some public listed companies which have their offices in Kulai.

Kulai is also within the Iskandar Development Region (IDR).

Geography

The town is located along the old trunk road linking Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru. The main road is lined with many retail shops. There are also many housing estates within the township. The town is surrounded by rubber and oil palm estates.

Demography

The Chinese are concentrated in Kulai and Senai Town while the Malay are mostly in the Felda Scheme settlements. The Indians are mostly working in rubber estates.

Transport

Kulai was an important stopover on the Johor Bahru-Kuala Lumpur trunk road in the 1970s and 1980s until the North-South Expressway opened in 1994, which bypassed the town. The trunk road is now identified as Road One.

The town also has a small railway station run by the Malayan Railway and is also one of the access points to the Gunung Pulai nature reserve. Senai Airport, the international airport which serves Johor is within the municipality.

The town is accessible by road through the North-South Expressway and the old trunk road, by rail operated by the Malayan Railway (KTM) and by air through the Senai International Airport.

Culture

Kulai Old Town

The Chinese community in Kulai are mainly of the Hakka dialect group. There are a few Chinese temples and churches serving the needs of the Chinese community.

Chinese Taoist temples include the "Thousand Fairies" Temple along the old trunk road, the "Seven Sisters" temple and other smaller temples.

Churches in Kulai include the Presbyterian Church(SYNOD), Christ the King Catholic Church, Baptist Church and churches of other denominations.

The Masjid Jamek is located within Kulai town and serve the needs of the Muslim townfolks.

Notable Residents

• Mawi - the winner of the 2005 Akademi Fantasia singing competition and now becomes among the most popular Malaysian singer, from FELDA Taib Andak.

• Penny Tai - popular female singer and the winner of Best Composer (爱疯了) at Taiwanese Golden Melody Awards 2006 (金曲奖).

External links

• Template:Zh icon Town website set up by local community
• Template:Zh icon Town forum set up by local community - kulaitalks.net
• Template:Zh icon Official website of Kulai Municial Council

References

• Muar to say goodbye to Tangkak, The Star, November 20, 2006