Petaling Jaya, also known as PJ by the many locals, is a major Malaysian city that was originally planned to be developed as a satellite township for the mighty Kuala Lumpur. This beautiful city is situated in the Petaling District of Selangor and covers an area up to 97.2 square kilometers (approx.). Beginning with a sweet and a humble town measuring a little area, today Petaling Jaya has been granted the status of a city (20th June, 2006). Also referred to as the twin sister of the capital city Kuala Lumpur, this city is the very first well-planned town of Malaysia which has a number of interesting elements and tourist attractions. There are various residential, commercial as well as business districts here. Not only this, Petaling Jaya has today become a renowned metropolitan city that is a habitat to more than 500,000 inhabitants today.
Because of its extreme proximity to Kuala Lumpur, this city remains a very famous choice for all the city dwellers as well as tourists and travelers. This is because Petaling Jaya is very convenient to travel to and this makes this city one of the most famous spot for all the outsiders. At the same time, a number of attractions such as amazing shopping centers, cozy accommodation, plush dining areas, etc. make it a perfect choice for all those individuals who look forward to traveling to a place which has the best of everything. Petaling Jaya is surrounded by the capital city Kuala Lumpur as to the east, capital city of Selangor and Subang Jaya to the west, Sungai Buloh as to the north and Bandar Kinrara as to the south.
History of the well-planned city:
Petaling Jaya surely has a history worth knowing about. The city was firstly developed by the British which was merely an answer to the growing problem of population in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur. This happened in the year 1952 and since then, the city has been witnessing an astonishing growth in regard to the population size as well as its geographical relevance. The entire development of this city centered the area which is currently addressed as ‘Old Town’ by the people. The first ever road constructed in the city was called as Jalan 1 which mean Road 1, however, today the same is addressed as Jalan Templer which is believed to be named after the then British High Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Sir Gerald Templer to Malaya.
By the end of the year 1954, the city was under the administration of the Petaling Jaya Town Authority and Kuala Lumpur District Officer. On the 1st of January, 1977, the town authority was upgraded in order to become Petaling Jaya Municipal Council or Majlis Perbandaran Petaling Jaya (MPPJ).
By this time, the city progressed in full-throttle because of its colossal rural-urban migration. As the city began to encounter the migration of more number of people, Sungai Way and Subang districts along with many new areas like Subang Jaya, Seksyen 52, and many other towns began to develop in the areas that were straight under the administration and jurisdiction of the municipality. Eventually, with a reference to the realignment of the boundary in the year 1997, portions of Petaling Jaya like Sunway, Subang Jaya, Puchong as well as USJ were directly placed under the administration and jurisdiction of the newly formed Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) respectively.
With a remarkable history and a rapid growth scale, the city today acts as one of the center hubs of the famous Klang Valley for all kinds of industrialization. Over the time, the city has become one of the most prosperous municipalities in the area of Selangor.
The city wore another feather in its hat when it was granted a status of city on the 20th June, 2006. Dato’ Ahmad Termizi Putel who was a former Yang di-Pertua MPPJ was named as the first mayor of the city.
Climate and weather conditions of the city:
Petaling Jaya is considered as one of the wettest cities of Malaysia. The city usually remains warm, having an average maximum temperature of 30 degrees Celsius respectively. What makes the city the wettest one is the heavy rainfall which it receives throughout the year and the estimate of the rainfall roughly goes to an average of 3,300 mm. There is no particular dry season that the city witnesses, but the months of June and July are usually considered to be the driest months. Each month, the city witnesses a rainfall measuring more than 200 mm. Other climatic conditions such as extreme rainstorms as well as thunderstorms are a very common affair within the city. In fact, this city is considered as one of the highest lightning strike areas throughout the world. However, because of the normal global temperature variations, the city is experiencing some extreme drought conditions along with frequent rationing in the neighborhoods.
Demographics of the city:
If the record of 2014 is taken into consideration, the city claimed a total of 613,977 residents accommodating a total area of 51.4 square kilometers respectively. The actual population by the year 2015 would have been raised by a total of 550,000 residents. Thus, it can be concluded that the city is well populated and occupied.
Major landmarks of the city:
One of the most prominent and attractive landmarks of the city is the Kota Darul Ehsan arch that embraces a symbolic representation of the boundary that separates Petaling Jaya from Kuala Lumpur. This particular arch bestrode the famous Federal Highway that was originally the only highway link in between the two cities. However, various other links have been introduced as an alternative to the congested Federal Highway in the present time.
Another major landmarks of the city are the famous Petaling Jaya Museum as well as Thai Wat Chetwan temple which are located very close to the Taman Jaya Station of the Kelana Jaya Line. The temple is considered to be a very popular building among the entire Buddhist community. Next is the PJ state, which happens to be a nickname for the Central Business District of Petaling Jaya along with the landmark Menara MBPJ. Damansara is considered as the main shopping hub and a various malls of the city are situated here.