Block2Blog

  Naval Base Never Left Irene ( 1941 -2021) My dearest sister left for England on 23 February 1967. Today, it is with profound sadness that I pen the passing of Irene Cecilia Dass-Danabalan on 21 September 2021. She grew up in Naval Base and attended Admiralty Asian School. Over the years, she never forgot Naval Base and the people from there whom she knew, especially her contemporaries, including Gopinathan S, Hilda Das, Joan Pereira, Kalaimagal, Kewal Singh (Dr), Muthiar Singh (Dr), Rajamani and Quah Kim Siak. She would inquire about them and visit neighbours like Aunty Nambiar, relatives, friends and practically anyone she remembered. She was always grateful for the little things that she had, which brought a lot of fun and joy into the lives of many others. Like my mother, she was a minimalist with plenty of empathy, giving even when she had little.   Which makes it all the more difficult for us to accept how she was deceived by some, including her own.   But she...

A tribute to the late Mr Sankara Das, the only race rider and driver from Sembawang Naval Base. By Suresh Nair I was asked by Gajandran Das to write a tribute for his late father, who passed away on September 27. I had no qualms about it although it would be the first time I’m penning a few words for someone I never met! Rather embarrassing, personally, I must say, considering I’m a journalist and never heard of Sitharam Sankara Das, probably among the first Indians to participate in motor racing in Singapore and the only Indian in the Singapore Motor and Sports Club (SMSC), way back in 1956 (two years after I was born!). Sankara Das is even possibly a regional racing-legend, too, as he raced in both cars and motorcycles. He was also dubbed the "most successful champion combination" together with his partner Frank Bradshaw at the Shell Malayan Motor Rally in 1957. Sankara Das admires the nostalgic photos of his racing feats in the 1950s. The elder brother of former Member of ...