Kuala Krai

Infobox Districts of Malaysian States
malaysian_state=Kelantan Darul Naim
state_

---

local_area_government=Majlis Daerah Kuala Krai Utara
image_coat2=Majlis Daerah Kuala Krai Selatan.pnglocal_area_government2=Majlis Daerah Kuala Krai Selatan¹
native_name=Kuala Krai
conventional_long_name = كوالا كراي
district_office=Kuala Krai
district_officer=n/a
parliament=
state_assembly=
population_estimate_year=2005
population_estimate=97,836
area=2329 cite web|url=http://www.ptjkk.kelantan.gov.my/profail-jajahan.htm|work=Pejabat Tanah dan Jajahan Kuala Krai|title=Profail Jajahan Kuala Krai|accessdate=2007-10-23]
population_density=73.6
footnotes = ¹ Also known as Majlis Daerah Dabong

Kuala Krai (alternative spelling: "Kuala Kerai") is a territory (jajahan) and town in the interior of the State of Kelantan in the north-east of Malaysia.

Kuala Krai territory

Kuala Krai territory is a landlocked administrative area in the centre of the State of Kelantan in the north east of Malaysia. The land is hilly, and before the 20th century the entire area was tropical rain forest. The territory contains the confluence of two major rivers, the Lebir and Galas, to form the Kelantan River, which then flows some 70km northwards through one of the most densely populated flood plains on the Malay Peninsular to its estuary in the South China Sea near the State capital of Kota Bharu.

As transport links improved during the 20th century, people moved into the area to take advantage of the abundant land available for farming. A railway was constructed in the 1920s through the undeveloped interior of Malaysia to link Kelantan State with the main centres of population on the west coast. This line ran through Kuala Krai territory, and settlements became established along its route. Road links followed, and towns and villages grew to cater for the mainly agricultural population. Rubber production was increasingly important throughout Malaysia, and many rubber tree plantations were set up in this area. Later, the country-wide shift to oil palm in the 1970s and 1980s saw the establishment of oil palm plantations in the territory, some of which replaced rubber.

Infrastructure developed to support the population and by the end of the 20th century Kuala Krai town had become a busy thriving town, and the administrative centre for the territory.

The territory "Jajahan Kuala Krai" has an area of 2329 km² and comprises three administrative districts (daerah):
* Daerah Olak Jeram (757.6 km²) with 67 villages
* Daerah Batu Mengkebang (726.9 km²) with 122 villages
* Daerah Dabong (844.5 km²) with 27 villagesSome of the better known towns and villages in the territory include Dabong, Kemubu, Manek Urai, Pahi and Kampung Laloh.

econdary Schools

The secondary schools in the territory are:cite web|url=http://jadn.co.uk/w/SecondarySchoolsInKelantan.htm|title=Secondary Schools in Kelantan, Malaysia|year=2007|accessdate=2007-12-06]
*Maahad Rahmaniah Padang Sembilan (SMU (A)Rahmaniah), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Dabong (SMK Dabong), 18200 Dabong
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Keroh (SMK Keroh), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Laloh (SMK Laloh), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Manek Urai (SMK Manek Urai), 18050 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Mengkebang (SMK Mengkebang), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Pahi (SMK Pahi), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Sultan Yahya Petra (1) (SMK Sultan Yahya Petra (1)), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Teknik Kuala Krai (SM Teknik Kuala Krai), 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Kuala Krai (SMK Kuala Krai), Sungai Durian, 18000 Kuala Krai
*Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Sultan Yahya Petra (2) (SMK Sultan Yahya Petra (2)), 18000 Kuala Krai

Population and ethnicity

The population and ethnicity of the territory is as follows:

Kuala Krai town

Kuala Krai town is about 64km south of the State capital, Kota Bharu.
*location: coord|5|32|0|N|102|12|0|E|
*altitude: 53 metres (177 feet)
*postcode: 18000

History

The history of the town of Kuala Krai started with the building of the East Coast Railway in the 1920s. Before that, the only settlement of any significance in the area was called Batu Mengkebang. The area was remote and travel was by river: there was a weekly service from Kota Baru to Batu Mengkebang via Pasir Mas and Tanah Merah, run by Duff Development River Steamers under contract to the Kelantan Government.cite web|url=http://jadn.co.uk/w/KualaKrai.htm|title=Kuala Krai, a town that owes its origin, growth to the railway|author=Shukor Rahman|work=scanned local newspaper cutting, probably dating from the early 1970s|accessdate=2007-05-05]

The opening of the railway line made a significant difference to the remote interior of the state of Kelantan. River traffic downstream from Kuala Krai was soon completely replaced by rail travel, and the railway became very popular with what was still quite a large planting fraternity in the interior of the state. The town grew as a centre of trade and supplies for the surrounding area.

More recently, road traffic past the town has significantly increased with the proximity of Federal Route 8 which opens a direct road link between Kota Bharu and the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. The suburb of Gucil has developed along this road to take advantage of the increased traffic.

Some important events in the history of the town:
* 1917 Kuala Krai hospital was opened
* 1926 (December) The "great flood", the worst flood in the history of the town, which affected both Kelantan and the neighbouring states of Terengganu and Perak
* 1930 (June 19) Visit of Sir Cecil Clementi, Governor of the Straits Settlements and High Commissioner for Malaya 1930-1934,cite web|url=http://janus.lib.cam.ac.uk/db/node.xsp?id=EAD%2FGBR%2F0115%2FBAM%206|title=Photograph collection of the British Association of Malaysia and Singapore|work=Janus catalogue|author=Janus project|accessdate=2006-12-09] after which he travelled on the newly constructed railway to Pahang
* 1941 The Japanese invasion force landed at Kota Bharu on 8 December and allied troops retreated; 2nd Lieutenant Butters and his section of Mahrattas were left behind in Kuala Kerai with a battalion of the Royal Malay Regiment; before leaving the town they attempted to impede Japanese progress using explosives to prevent the railway line being used by the advancing Japanesecite web|url=http://members.aol.com/reubique/Delme-R.htm|title=Major MICHAEL DELMÉ-RADCLIFFE|work=Ubique|author=Lieutenant Colonel Edward De Santis|year=2001|accessdate=2006-12-14]
* 1945 Immediately after the war ended, Kuala Krai was controlled by the communists for about six months before the arrival of allied forcesButz, William, and Julie DaVanzo. FIRST MALAYSIAN FAMILY LIFE SURVEY, 1976-1977 [Computer file] . 2nd ICPSR version. Santa Monica, CA: RAND [producer] , 1995. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor] , 1998. [http://www.rand.org/labor/family/software_and_data/FLS/mfls1/mfls1doc/mfls1smp.pdf mfls1smp.pdf] ]
* 1946 Serious flooding affected the town
* 1961 Opening of the Mini Zoo
* 1967 (Nov 26) Severe flooding: the water level of the Kelantan River rose to 86ft, which is 36ft above the normal levelcite web|url=http://blisdemo.bernama.com/article.phtml?SN=112554e457a7b94f47006c3c7f5981a5&s=12&p=109831|title=Major Floods|work=Bernama Library and Infolink Service|year=2004|accessdate=2006-12-09] Large areas of the town were flooded up to first floor level.
* 1967 (Dec) forced landing of an M.S.A. plane at Kuala Kerai which nearly had fatal consequences to the passengerscite web|url=http://www.parlimen.gov.my/opindexbi/pdf/OPDR12021968.pdf|title=Questions for Oral Answers|work=Second House of Representatives Malaysia - Fourth Session - Order Paper|date=1968-02-12|publisher=Parlimen Malaysia|accessdate=2008-02-24]

Infrastructure

Transport

Kuala Krai has excellent transport links. The railway station is on the Keretapi Tanah Melayu main line that runs from from Tumpat and Wakaf Baharu (close to Kota Bharu) right through the interior of the country to Gemas on the west of the peninsula, where it joins the main west coast line from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur. The town has good road links, with Federal Route 8 passing close to the town. And it is on the western bank of the Kelantan River, along which there are regular boat services up-river from the town.

General Hospital

"Hospital Kuala Krai (HKK)" opened in 1917, built on a small hill close to the town. Known as "Hospikrai", it now serves a population of 200,000 in the southern part of Kelantan, and has 120 beds and 218 staff.cite web|url=http://dls.intan.my/accsm/abst_Hospikrai%20Can.htm|title=Case Abstract- 'Hospikrai Can'|author=Dr. Roslan|work=National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN), Malaysia|year=1998|accessdate=2008-03-03] The hospital has resident specialists in Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pediatrics, Surgery, Anesthesiology, Pathology and Medical; there are visiting specialists from Kota Bharu for work in Psychiatric, Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Orthopedic and ENT. cite web|url=http://www.geocities.com/hospikrai/page7.html|title=Specialist Services - Khidmat Pakar|work=HOSPITAL KUALA KRAI|author=Zawawi Hassan|year=2003|accessdate=2008-03-03]

Museum and Mini Zoo

Kuala Krai Mini Zoocite web|url=http://www.virtualmalaysia.com/destination/kuala%20krai%20mini%20zoo.html|title=Kuala Krai Mini Zoo|work=Virtual Malaysia|author=The Ministry of Tourism, Malaysia|accessdate=2006-12-09] is managed by the District Council and open to the public. It is home to a variety of animals, including monkeys, bears, deer and various birds. The site extends to about ten acres, and also includes a Mini Museum displaying photographs and documents relating to the history of Kuala Krai, as well as a number of preserved animals. The mini zoo first opened in 1961, the only zoo to specialise exclusively in animals from the Malaysian jungle.

Public Library

There is a small public library in the town which, as well as giving access to its collection of books, affords public access to the internet for a small charge.

Kuala Krai Steps (formerly the Bradley Steps)

Eighty-one concrete steps leading down from the town to the river bank and boat jetty were constructed sometime between 1927 and 1929, and were named the "Bradley Steps" after a Mr. Gerald Bradley who was the energetic District Officer of the interior of Kelantan at the time. They have recently been renamed the "Kuala Krai Steps".

Just upstream from the town is the confluence of the Lebir and Galas rivers to become the Kelantan river, and it became clear that an elevated river level at the Bradley Steps was a good predictor of imminent flooding in the cultivated and populated river basin further downstream. Consequently, stick gauges were placed by the steps so that the river level could be read and monitored. The "Kelantan Department of Drainage and Irrigation" has since replaced the stick gauges with metric plates. This facilitates the prediction of flood levels and lead-times in villages all the way from Kuala Krai to the river estuary. cite web|url=http://www.water.gov.my/state/kelantan/history/hisstruct.htm|title=The Bradley Steps, Kuala Krai|work=DID Kelantan History - Structures of Historical Significance|year=2005|author=Department of Drainage and Irrigation of Kelantan|accessdate=2006-12-09] The steps, and the floodwater level, can be seen on the Kuala Krai [http://infobanjir.water.gov.my/KUALAKRAI.htm Flood Webcam] .

Education

There are a number of schools and colleges in the town, including:
* SMU (Arab) Rahmaniah, Padang Sembilan Kuala Krai
*SMK Sultan Yahya Petra 1 [http://smksyp1.kelantan.edu.my]
* MRSM Kuala Krai
* SM Teknik Kuala Krai
* SMK Kuala Krai
* RISDA College
* SMK PAHI

Other

*Batu Jong Training Camp, a national service training camp, opened in January 2005
*Lake Gardens (Taman Tasik), a pleasant public space in the town
*Lata Rek, Known to be a hydroelectric dam, is also a popular spot with a nice waterfall and recreational area

Famous people from Kuala Krai

* Tengku Budriah binti Al-Marhum Tengku Ismail, the Raja Perempuan of Perlis, was born in Kuala Krai on March 28, 1924. Her husband, Almarhum Tuanku Syed Putra ibni Almarhum Syed Hassan Jamalullail was elected as the third King of Malaysia (known as Yang di-Pertuan Agong) from 1960 to 1965.cite web|url=http://www.malaysianmonarchy.org.my/portal_bi/rk3/rk3a.php?id=rk3_3|title=Yang di-Pertuan Agong III|work=Malaysian Monarchy|author=Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia|year=2003|accessdate=2006-12-10]
* Zang Toi, New York fashion designer, was born in Kuala Krai on 11 June 1961cite web|url=http://allmalaysia.info/news/story.asp?file=/2003/5/31/people/wktoiboy&sec=miPeople|title=Designer dreams|work=All Malaysia.info|year=2003|author=Star Publications (Malaysia)|accessdate=2006-12-10]
* T. Wignesan, writer, was born in Kuala Krai in the early 1930scite web|url=http://www.writers.net/writers/25497|title=T. Wignesan|work=WritersNet|author=Netconcepts, LLC|accessdate=2006-12-11] cite web|url=http://stateless.freehosting.net/Curriculum%20Vitae.htm|title=Curriculum Vitae|author=T Wignesan|year=2006|accessdate=2006-12-11]
* Mee Fong, a commercial photographer, had a studio in Kuala Krai in 1930cite web|url=http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/rcs_photographers/entry.php?id=326|title=Mee Fong, fl 1930, photographer|work=RCS Photographers Index|accessdate=2006-12-14|year=2004|author=Cambridge University Library]

References

External links

* [http://kuala_krai.idesa.net.my/] - Bahasa Malaysia