One of the most pressing issues facing Singapore in the 1950s was the severe shortage of housing for its rapidly growing population. But imposing a solution on the population of Singapore would have drastic consequences for the identity and culture of Singaporeans, altering their relationship to the earth, to the state, and to each other. In this episode. PJ Thum sits down with Dr Loh Kah Seng, author of “Squatters into Citizens: The 1961 Bukit Ho Swee Fire and the Making of Singapore.”

Please send questions, comments, and feedback to thehistoryofsingapore@gmail.com or visit thehistoryofsingapore.com. Support the show at patreon.com/pjthum. For a longer version of this interview, please visit soundcloud.com/historysg/episode34. For all the previous episodes in this series, search for "History of Singapore" on bfm.my.