Sungai Siput, Perak

View of Lion Hill in Sungai Siput, Perak (18 September, 2016)


Sungai Siput (GPS: 4.81936, 101.07593), is a small town in Kuala Kangsar District, Perak. Like several of the towns in the central Perak area, Sungai Siput is famous for producing groundnuts.

The namesake river, Sungai Siput, forms a small valley surrounded by limestone hills within the Kinta Valley area. Tin was mined here in large quantities during the late 19th century. A sort of cable-car system¹ was installed to transport the ore from the hills to the plains below.

The village of Sungai Siput is believed to have been established around 1893 to house mostly Chinese tin miners. At the initial stage, there were 75 houses.

In Malaysian politics, Sungai Siput was the stronghold of Dato Seri Sami Vellu, the president of the Malaysian Indian Congress from 1974 until his defeat in the 2008 election by Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj of Parti Socialist Malaysia (PSM) winning under Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR).

How to reach Sungai Siput

Sungai Siput is located to the north of Ipoh. Exit the North South Expressway at either Exit 138 if coming from the south and Exit 141 if coming from the north, and follow the direction sign to head towards Sungai Siput. You will exit from the expressway to Jalan Chemor (A1) and head north. As you near Sungai Siput town, you will not fail to notice its most famous landmark. Called Lion Hill, it is a conical hill with a steep peak.

Map of Sungai Siput, Perak

Sights in Sungai Siput, Perak

Sungai Siput is on the Map of towns in Perak

Bibliography

¹  pg 155: Kinta Valley: Pioneering Malaysia's Modern Development, by Khoo Salma Nasution & Abdur-Razzaq Lubis
ISBN: 983-42113-09

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