Individual and company charged for unauthorised works to conserved building at 32 Desker Road

1. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has charged 54-year-old Manickam Nagarajan (“Nagarajan”) in court today with one count of carrying out unauthorised works to a conserved building located at 32 Desker Road. URA has also brought two counts of charges against the building owner, Layan Management Pte. Ltd., one for permitting Nagarajan to carry out the unauthorised works, and one for the failure to appoint an architect to supervise the works within the Little India Conservation Area.

2. The unauthorised works include demolition of the first-storey residential front¹, the rear facade and service block², and the original internal timber staircase, which are key features of the conserved shophouse. They also include unauthorised building and renovation works.

3. Conserved buildings serve as important physical markers of Singapore’s shared history and identity. Unauthorised works to conserved buildings can negatively impact the character of historic buildings and Conservation Areas. Demolition works, in particular, will result in the irrevocable loss of historic fabric.

4. URA takes a firm stance against unauthorised works carried out on conserved buildings. Building owners, developers, architects and engineers involved in carrying out restoration or development works to or near to conserved buildings are reminded to comply with the Conservation Guidelines. They are also required to appoint a Qualified Person, and to seek necessary approvals from URA and other relevant agencies prior to the commencement of works on-site. URA will continue to investigate and take strict enforcement action against those found to have committed such offences. If found guilty under the Planning Act, offenders may be liable to a fine of up to $500,000, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.

¹ Residential fronts are a key element contributing to a shophouse’s front facade. They are typically characterised by a double-leafed timber door flanked on both sides by timber-framed windows with vertical iron security bars.

² The rear facade and rear service block are fundamental features that make up the back of a shophouse.