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Sungai Petani

Coordinates: 5°38′N 100°30′E / 5.633°N 100.500°E / 5.633; 100.500
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Sungai Petani
سوڠاي ڤتاني
Official logo of Sungai Petani سوڠاي ڤتاني
Nickname: 
SP
CountryMalaysia
StateKedah
Government
 • Yang DiPertuaHaji Adzmi Bin Din
Population
 (2010)[1]
 • Total
421,530
Time zoneUTC+8 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)Not observed
Websitehttp://www.mpspk.gov.my/

Sungai Petani (abbreviated "Sg. Petani" or "SP")[2] is a town in the state of Kedah, in the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia. Sungai Petani is the largest town in Kedah followed by the state capital Alor Setar.[3][4]

Etmylogy

The name Sungai Petani has its roots from sungai meaning river and petani meaning farmer in the Malay language. Sungai Petani in full means "Farmer's River", due to the huge concentration of paddy fields and farmers in the state. The word "petani" may also refer to Pattani, a city in present day Thailand to which the river was once connected. Even the old spelling of Sungai Petani was "Sungei Patani", without any reference to farming.

History

Politics

Sungai Petani is designated as a parliamentary area in its own right, with an electorate of 983,851 people (2008). It is currently represented by Johari Abdul from Parti Keadilan Rakyat.

The parliamentary area of Merbok and part of parliamentary area of Yan (Gurun) is also part of Sungai Petani Municipal administrative area.

Economy

Sungai Petani has a high and medium sized business community. Small and medium industry also play a part in the local economy, producing numerous products, from semiconductors to television tubes and from textile to wood products. [citation needed]

Sungai Petani has many malls and shopping centers such as Central Square, Village Mall, Lagenda Height Tesco, Sungai Petani North Tesco, Sungai Petani South Tesco, Giant Hypermarket, Econsave, Billion, Sp Plaza and Parkson.

Transportation

The town is accessible through the Federal Route 1 and also the North-South Expressway. Sungai Petani has two highway exits while the Federal Route I runs across the city. Apart from that, it also has a train station and an makeshift express bus hub that caters to any destination within Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

Sungai Petani also has a relatively below average local bus service called City Liner,[5] with air-conditioned red coaches.The express bus station is located not far from the Sungai Petani Railway Station. The railway station is managed by Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad.

The nearest airport is the Penang International Airport on Penang Island. Another alternative airport is the Sultan Abdul Halim Airport, Alor Star (the state capital of Kedah).

Health

Sungai Petani has various health amenities such as the Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital, a USD150-million hospital and various private medical facilities. It is a 498-bed hospital which provides secondary and tertiary specialist services.

There are also two private hospitals: Metro Specialist Hospital and Hospital Pantai Utara.

Education

Schools

The District Education Department located in Sungai Petani administers two districts of Kuala Muda and Yan with the highest number of primary and secondary schools in the state of Kedah.

Sungai Petani hosts a large number of reputable schools such as the famous Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Ibrahim,[6] and Sekolah Menengah Sains Sultan Mohamad Jiwa.

Other schools include Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Dato' Bijaya Setia, Sekolah Kebangsaan Taman Ria, Sekolah Kebangsaan Ibrahim, Convent Father Barre (Primary and Secondary), Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Bakar Arang, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Khir Johari, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Taman Ria Jaya, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan St. Theresa (Primary and Secondary) , Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Bandar Sungai Petani, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tunku Ismail, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Sungai Pasir and Sekolah Menengah Teknik Sungai Petani 1 & 2.

Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Amanjaya, Sg. Lalang (6 km north of Sungai Petani) and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Bedong (7.5 km north of Sungai Petani) is the most crowded school in Kedah state and second most crowded school in the country.

SRJK(T) Saraswathi is also one of the premier Tamil primary schools in Kedah. Recently the school celebrated its 85th anniversary.

Sin Min Secondary School and its Chinese primary school counterpart, SJK(C) Sin Min, are both also famous nationally for its academic performance. Besides, there is also a well established Chinese primary school called SJK(C) Sin Kwang which built at the year of merdeka .

There is also a MARA Junior Science College Merbok (MRSM) located in Merbok about 11 km north west of Sungai Petani.

Tertiary

The AIMST University, (the Asian Institute of Medicine, Science and Technology), was previously situated in Amanjaya. In April 2007, the university moved to its new futuristic Semeling campus.

Universiti Teknologi Mara has a branch campus located at Merbok, Sungai Petani. Universiti Utara Malaysia also has a branch campus here.

Other government institutions with campuses in Sungai Petani include Institusi Kemahiran Malaysia (IKM). Located ten minutes from Sungai Petani town, Institut Pendidikan Guru Kampus Sultan Abdul Halim (IPG KSAH) is an institution set up by the government to provide teaching courses for trainee teachers.

One of the country's fastest growing private universities, the Open University Malaysia (OUM) Regional Learning Center for the state of Kedah and Perlis are also located in Sungai Petani. There are also private colleges like PTPL College and Cosmopoint College offering a variety of courses.

The Kolej Universiti Insaniah (KUIN) is a private university operating from two campuses in Kedah and one of them is located in Sungai Petani.

Tourism

Clock Tower

The major of Sungai Petani is a clock tower located on the main street, Jalan Ibrahim. The clock tower was built in 1936. It is 12.1 m in height. It is topped by a dome-shaped and gold coloured structure. The tower was a present from Lim Lean Teng to George V and Queen Mary to commemorate the Silver Jubilee.

File:Jam besar 1990.jpg
Clock Tower in 1990
Clock Tower in 2010

Parks

Sungai Petani is also known for its green lungs and attractions. [citation needed]

In the heart of the town is the famous Jubli Perak (Silver Jubilee) public park and used to be a Bird Park. There are more than five golf courses around Sungai Petani as well as various streams and rivers. Many lakes dot the land and have been attracting fishing fans for years.

SP Club

A recreational venue for the residents of Sungai Petani is the Sungai Petani Club, or SP Club as it is fondly called. Situated in the middle of the town, it is the oldest golf club in the State of Kedah, having been established in 1922 by British planters. [citation needed] The unique colonial facade and antique wooden interiors of the clubhouse would render it as a heritage site in Sungai Petani. The 9-hole golf course covers 40 acres (160,000 m2) of prime land which acts as a green lung to the city centre.

The Carnival

The Carnival is a water park in Sungai Petani within the grounds of Cinta Sayang Golf and Country Resort. The Carnivall is the first water park in Kedah. It was opened on 25 December 2006.

Pantai Merdeka

The only beach in mainland Kedah, it is a major attraction for beach goers from all over mainland Penang and Kedah State. [citation needed] Various accommodation is available for rent to experience the beach and other attractions in the area which includes harvesting Kepah, Siput Kemudi and Kerang (local seafood) in Kampung Tepi Sungai, Kota Kuala Muda, Pantai Merdeka itself and also at Pulau Sayak. Pantai Merdeka is also a gateway to island activities in small islands called Pulau Bidan and Pulau Telor which are a few minutes boat ride away. These areas are good for fishing and its beaches. In addition to that Kota Kuala Muda has an old fort used to be the fort of the Raja Muda of Kedah during its time. There is also an archeology site in Kota Kuala Muda where precious stones panning were done few hundred years ago. [citation needed]

Cinemas

There are two cinemas, Golden Screen Cinemas (GSC) Central Square Sungai Petani and Grand Cineplex Village Mall Sungai Petani, that are operating in Sungai Petani. GSC Central Square is a three-screen cinema located on the fifth floor of Central Square, one of the famous shopping complexes at Sungai Petani, while the newly opened Grand Cineplex is a four-screen cineplex located on level two of the Village Mall. The seating capacity of GSC Central Square and Grand Cineplex are 666 and 680 respectively.[7][8] Before February 2010, the only place to watch a movie was GSC Central Square as it was the only one that has been operating since 1997.[9] Grand Cineplex Village Mall is located near Tesco Sungai Petani, Lagenda Heights, which is at the northern part of Sungai Petani that is growing rapidly at the moment. The opening of Grand Cineplex on 2010 provides patrons with another choice on where to watch a movie in Sungai Petani. There is another GSC planned to be located in the Amanjaya Mall which is under construction.The GSC is advertised as GSC:LITE and is expected to be smaller than other GSC's.

Attractions near Sungai Petani

About 30 kilometres away, is Gunung Jerai. Gunung Jerai is 1,217 metres from the sea level. This is the tallest mountain in the northern region and is surrounded by a vast jungle. It is a navigational point for ships entering the Straits of Malacca from the north because it is visible from far. There is an 18 km trekking route to the top of the mountain through a winding road. Atop the Jerai is a resort and the mountain boasts some tall and cooling waterfalls. Historically, the Jerai mountain served as the navigational point for traders from the east and west. There was a Hindu temple on top of the mountain that was built nearly a thousand years ago during the Bujang Valley Hindu Civilization.[10]

Tanjung Dawai is a place which is known as a seafood spot in Sungai Petani. It is located 30 minutes from Sungai Petani. It has about twenty seafood restaurants.

Culture

Cuisine

Sungai Petani is known for its Nasi Kandar and Mee Goreng Mamak which is a Indian Muslim cuisine. [citation needed] Sungai Petani also has various selection of franchise restaurant and cafes.

Bujang Valley

The Bujang Valley or Lembah Bujang, sometimes referred to as the Ancient Wonder of Kedah, is a rich historical site covering an area of about 400sq. km situated in Merbok (17 km from Sungai Petani), bounded by Bukit Coras (Choras Hill) and Gunung Jerai. This archaeological area was the site of an ancient Hindu-Buddhist kingdom that ruled the region from the 4th century AD. There i also an archaeological museum situated here which is known as The Lembah Bujang Archaeological Museum.[11]

Closest Cities

References

  1. ^ http://www.mpspk.gov.my/web/guest/population;jsessionid=0956D5C855629514252AA64B8F27ABAE
  2. ^ http://www.correctplace.com/
  3. ^ "Population Distribution and Basic Demographic Characteristics, 2010" (PDF). Department of Statistics, Malaysia. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
  4. ^ "Key Summary Statistics For Local Authority Areas, Malaysia 2010" (PDF). Department of Statistics, Malaysia. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
  5. ^ http://www.cityliner.com.my/
  6. ^ http://smkibrahim.net/news.php
  7. ^ "GSC Central Square, Sungai Petani". Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  8. ^ "Grand Cineplex Village Mall, Sungai Petani". Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  9. ^ "GSC Central Square, Sungai Petani". Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  10. ^ http://www.journeymalaysia.com/MHIS_lembahbujang.htm
  11. ^ http://www.jmm.gov.my/en/museum/lembah-bujang-archaeological-museum

5°38′N 100°30′E / 5.633°N 100.500°E / 5.633; 100.500