Understand
The name Kluang comes from the Malay word keluang, which means a type of flying fox or rather a type of fruit bat. Alas, the critters have almost completely disappeared, and some suspect that the town was named after two mountains that resemble the head and wing respectively of a bat from a distance.
History
The State of Johor lies at the southern end of Peninsular Malaysia, known as "The Southern Gateway to Malaysia", surrounded by Selat Melaka Straits of Malacca on the west coast, with Laut China Selatan South China Sea on the east coast. Selat Johor or the Straits of Johor separating this state from Singapore. Johor has eight districts, including Kluang.
Kluang district is located in the middle of the state of Johor in Malaysia. It is geographically located at 110 km north from Johor Bahru, east-southeast of Batu Pahat, west of Mersing and south of Segamat. This district is the only district that does not have a sea front, as it is surrounded by all other districts namely, Johor Bahru, Pontian, Batu Pahat, Segamat, Mersing and Kota Tinggi, except Muar district.
The name Kluang derives from the Malay word 'keluang' which means a type of flying fox or rather a type of fruit bat. They have almost completely disappeared due to the combination of hunting and destruction of their natural habitat deforestation. Some people believed that Kluang was named after two mountains that resemble the head and wing respectively of a bat from a distance.
Kluang was founded in 1915, to serve as the administrative centre for Central Johor. A railway line linking north to south Malaya was built passing through Kluang to provide the communication link to transport labour and tropical produces from Kluang and this helped in its growth since 1915. Roads were built to link Kluang to Johor Bahru towards the south, to Batu Pahat towards the north-west and to Mersing towards the east. Kluang is divided into two district councils namely Simpang Renggam District Council Majlis Daerah Simpang Renggam based in the town of Simpang Renggam and Kluang Municipal Council Majlis Perbandaran Kluang based in the town of Kluang which is also the district capital. This district grew rapidly in 1920 and 1930 as a major rubber-producing district.
In its early days, Kluang as an entirely agricultural economy, is an agriculture hub of Johor; rubber and oil palm are the major crops. With the establishment of Institute Pertanian it has benefited the agricultural sector of Kluang. Now it has the biggest dragon fruit orchard, organic vegetables farm, organic rice farm, pineapples and tea plantation. Kluang is also famous for being the main producer of ceramic pottery and tiles, with pottery factories located at the boarder township of Machap. The most renowned tiles manufacturers are MML Malaysian Mosaic, Guocera and Claytan all located at Kluang Industrial area. Kluang has also developed various industries including polymer, porcelain, paper, textiles and electrical products. It grew rapidly from agriculture sector to industrial sector in late 1970. The dynamic change was after the completion of BCB Plaza and Prime City Hotel, the first mega shopping mall in Kluang founded in 1996. The increasing commercial activities have brought major bank and stock brokerages house to set up branches in Kluang.
With the tremendous growth of economy, Kluang was upgraded from the status of District to Municipal on 31 January 2001. The first Kluang specialist medical centre was founded in year 2000, it provided the much-needed medical facility for Kluang residents. The most sought after shopping mall with the combination of entertainment, food, leisure and shopping, "Kluang Parade" was completed in February 2007. It is currently the 2nd biggest shopping mall in Kluang and it has become the premier shopping area in Kluang. It is located at Jalan Sentul, in the heart of the busiest business golden triangle. The streets and surrounding buildings were given a facelift as well. Kluang has become a vibrant town with all the entertainment and branded goods which a modern town should have.