Lost cities of the underworld — Ipoh

The city council has set up a committee to investigate a “lost” underground tunnel said to connect the High Court, Ipoh Railway Station and police station.

Datuk Bandar Roshidi Hashim said one entrance of the pre-war tunnel, which is closed off to the public, is located at the Ipoh Town Hall.

However, experts are only expected to explore the tunnel next week and council engineers could not yet confirm the actual age and size of the structure.

“There is a tunnel (at the Town Hall) but we are still verifying the details,” Roshidi told reporters after the full board meeting here yesterday.

“If it is true that this tunnel runs under the Ipoh Town Hall, the High Court, Railway Station and the police station, then it is a historical legacy that we must show others,” he added.

Earlier, councillor and Ipoh Barat MP M. Kulasegaran urged the council to verify whether the Town Hall tunnel matched descriptions of a tunnel that had been circulating since the 1980s.

Local folklore has it that a tunnel was built to facilitate the movement of terrorists and high profile criminal suspects between the police station and Ipoh Railway Station to the High Court, said Kulasegaran.

Roshidi added that discussions were being held to promote a “historical trail” covering large parts of Ipoh Old Town, including Lorong Panglima and possibly the tunnel.

Councillor Ding Poi Kooi had earlier urged the council to promote Lorong Panglima, also known as Lane of the Second Concubine, as a heritage site for its colourful history.

On a related matter, the mayor said the Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Ministry was carrying out conservation efforts on the 80-year-old Post and Telegraphs Office adjoining the Ipoh Town Hall.