Shah Alam
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Shah Alam was the name of two Mughal emperors, Shah Alam I and Shah Alam II.
| Shah Alam | |||
| |||
| Nickname: "Bandar Raya Anggerik" | |||
| Motto: 'Indah Bestari' (English: ) | |||
| Location in Malaysia | |||
| Country | Malaysia | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| State | Selangor | ||
| Establishment | November 1978 | ||
| Mayor | Dato' Ramlan Bin Othman | ||
| Area | |||
| - City | 290.3 km² | ||
| Population | |||
| - City (2004) | 356,066 | ||
| Time zone | MST (UTC+8) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | Not observed (UTC) | ||
| Website: http://www.mbsa.gov.my | |||
Shah Alam (population 356,066) is a city in Malaysia, about 25 km west of the country's capital, Kuala Lumpur. In 1978, it replaced Kuala Lumpur as the capital city of the state of Selangor due to Kuala Lumpur's incorporation into a Federal Territory. The name Shah Alam comes from Persian.
Long ago, Shah Alam was known as Sungai Renggam and is known only as an rubber and oil palm estate. Later, the same area was identified as Batu Tiga prior to Malaysian independence, and has been a centre of rubber and palm oil trade for centuries. Its current name was chosen by the then state Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, after his late father Sultan Alam Shah. Many other monuments, buildings and even a street are named after the late Sultan.
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[edit] City layout
Shah Alam has a similar urban layout as Petaling Jaya or Subang Jaya with housing areas occupying most of the city areas (55.2 km²) and commercial centres scattered around the different 'Seksyen' (sections). The city has a number of shopping malls (Plaza Alam Sentral, SACC Mall, Plaza Shah Alam @ Plaza Masalam and Kompleks PKNS) and it has many schools, shops, banks, eateries, cafes, hotels, medical centres, clinics, large hypermarkets (notably Tesco, Giant and Makro) and recreational areas. Vibrant commercial areas are situated mostly at the city centre (Seksyen 14), Seksyen 13 and Seksyen 9.
All main roads and streets in the city have signs with their names shown in both Roman and Jawi scripts.
[edit] Economy
The main plant of the Malaysian car manufacturer Proton is located in Shah Alam. There are many companies who have their main plants in the industrial areas, both local and foreign.
Shah Alam flourished as a growing settlement after the Proton car manufacturing plant was set up, which marked the beginning of the city as an industrial city. The city was granted city status on 10 October 2000 with Dato' Haji Abu Sujak Haji Mahmud as the first City mayor.
[edit] Education
The Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM and formerly known as Institut Teknologi MARA or ITM) which is known as Malaysia's affirmative action symbol is located in the state capital. The whole university area covers a whole section at the western hills of the city known as Seksyen 1. At Seksyen 17, there is also a campus of UiTM, named INTEC UiTM (International Education Centre), where its students undergo preparation programmes for overseas studies. Section 18 is where the hostels of INTEC, ( Cemara and Akasia ) are situated.
Other institutions of higher learning in Shah Alam include Universiti Industri Selangor and PTPL College (also known as KUTPM).
Shah Alam is also served by many primary and secondary schools. This is a list of schools in Shah Alam.
- Section 9 Secondary (SMK Seksyen 9) and Primary (SK Seksyen 9) School
- Section 11 Secondary School
- Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Secondary School
- Tengku Ampuan Jemaah Religious Secondary School
- Section 4 Primary School
- Section 2 Secondary School
- Section 13 Primary School
- Section 18 Secondary School
- Section 19 Secondary and Primary Schools
- Section 24 Secondary School
- Section 24(2) Secondary School
- Section 7 Secondary and Primary Schools
- Section 6 Primary School
- Bandar Anggerik Primary School
- Section 17 Vocational School
- Sekolah Sri Cahaya
- Section 20 Primary School
[edit] Sports
The city also boasts the huge and modern Shah Alam Stadium with a capacity of 81,000 and 5,500 parking lots where many fairs are held. The stadium is also the home stadium of the Selangor state football team. A smaller indoor stadium, Stadium Melawati, and the Selangor Aquatic Centre are located nearby.
[edit] Transportation
KTM Komuter serves two stations in Shah Alam : Shah Alam (situated at the southern part of the city in Seksyen 19) and Batu 3 stations.
Shah Alam is well connected to other main cities in Klang Valley by highways such as the Federal Highway, New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE), Shah Alam Expressway (KESAS), Guthrie Corridor Expressway and the North-South Expressway Central Link (ELITE). Shah Alam is well connected to main transportation hubs such as the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (30 km south of the city) and KL Sentral in Kuala Lumpur. Buses and taxis provide public transport in commercial areas in the city.
In the future, Shah Alam might be served by light rail transit and monorail systems.
[edit] Places of interest
Shah Alam is most famous for its mosque, the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque. It is the largest mosque in Malaysia and one of the largest in Southeast Asia. Its most salient feature is its large blue and white dome, which measures 170 feet in diameter and reaches 350 feet above ground level. The dome is one of the biggest domes covering a mosque in the world. The mosque also has four minarets erected at the corners, with each minaret 460 feet tall. The mosque is the only mosque that has four minarets in Malaysia. The mosque was commissioned by the late Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz, when he declared Shah Alam as the new capital of Selangor on February 14, 1974. Construction of the mosque was completed on March 11, 1988. The mosque can accommodate up to 24,000 worshippers.
Shah Alam also houses the Selangor State Museum (Muzium Alam Shah) which displays many treasures and artifacts connected to the history of Selangor. Adjacent to the museum is the Selangor State Library (Perpustakaan Raja Tun Uda). The Selangor Islamic Arts Complex (Kompleks Kesenian Islam Selangor or Riyadh Fannil Islam) is situated nearby, housing many Islamic masterpieces and creativities such as a variety of Islamic calligraphy, known as khat, and a number of precious treasures. One of them is an old Qur'an obtained from an Acehnese months before the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami struck. At the banks of the Lake Gardens, an art gallery and performance centre called Laman Budaya is located. Exhibitions and shows regularly take place here.
The city is surrounded by many beautiful parks and gardens, such as Shah Alam Lake Gardens and Bukit Cahaya Sri Alam Agricultural Park (soon to be National Botanical Gardens).
Other places of interest are:
- Wet World Waterpark
- SACC Mall
- Plaza Perangsang
- Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Building
- Section 9
- Istana Bukit Kayangan
- Shah Alam Square (adjacent to Plaza Alam Sentral)
- Independence Square (where the 43rd national-level National Day Parade was held)
- Kelab Golf Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah
Shah Alam is also known for its absence of entertainment outlets such as cinemas or live music venues.
[edit] Hotels
Shah Alam has a few hotels but not as many as Kuala Lumpur. These include Carlton Holiday Hotel (Seksyen 13), Concorde Hotel (Seksyen 9), Grand Blue Wave Hotel (Seksyen 13), UiTM Hotel (Seksyen 1), Intekma Resort (Section 7), Quality Hotel (Seksyen 13), De Palma Inn Hotel (Seksyen 19).
[edit] External links
