Almost a million Singaporean HDB households will receive rebates on their utility and conservancy bills in January, in the fourth quarterly disbursement for Financial Year 2025. Eligible households will receive U-Save and Service & Conservancy Charges (S&CC) rebates in January next year as part of the permanent GST Voucher scheme and the enhanced Assurance Package, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) in a statement on Tuesday (Dec 30). The rebates help to offset the utility bills and conservancy charges for lower- to middle-income HDB households and are disbursed quarterly each financial year, said MOF. Households will receive rebates according to their HDB flat type. For instance, households living in a one- or two-room flat will receive $190 worth of U-Save and half a month of S&CC rebates. Eligible households do not need to take any action and will have the rebates automatically credited to their utilities accounts by SP Services and their town councils respectively. 

Two male motorcyclists were arrested during a two-day enforcement blitz targeting errant motorcyclists on expressways. In a statement on Tuesday (Dec 30), the Traffic Police (TP) said they conducted checks on 132 vehicles as part of the operation on Dec 15 and 16. The two motorcyclists, aged 21 and 33, were arrested for driving without a valid licence and for using a motor vehicle without insurance coverage. Over the two days, a total of 154 summonses were issued for various traffic offences, including speeding, riding on road shoulders, stopping on road shoulders, and using unapproved helmets, said the police. For driving without a licence, offenders may be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to three years, or both. Repeat offenders can be fined up to $20,000, jailed up to six years, or both. The vehicle may also be forfeited. For using a motor vehicle without insurance coverage, offenders may face a fine up to $1,000, a jail term of up to three months, or both. Offenders will also be disqualified from driving all classes of vehicles. [[nid:727423]]

The police are looking for one of two prime movers involved in an accident which resulted in the death of a 61-year-old motorcyclist on the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) on Monday (Dec 29) evening. The fatal accident occurred in the direction of Tuas after Clementi Road at about 5.45pm. In response to AsiaOne's queries, the police said the male motorist was declared dead at the scene by a paramedic from the Singapore Civil Defence Force. «Efforts to trace one of the prime movers are underway,» it said, adding that investigations are ongoing. A video filmed by an eyewitness shows an overturned motorcycle and trails of blood streaking the rain-soaked road, reported 8world. A taxi driver, surnamed Fu, told Shin Min Daily News that it was a «horrific» accident. The Chinese evening daily reported that the victim is believed to have fallen after being hit by one of the prime movers and then run over by the other heavy vehicle. Fu said that a person had placed an umbrella over the victim to shield him from the rain while waiting for first responders to arrive. 

More than 80kg of rhinoceros horns, lion and tiger bones were seized in Johannesburg on Dec 1, following a joint operation between the National Parks Board (NParks) and South African authorities.In a statement on Tuesday (Dec 30), NParks said it was alerted to a suspicious shipment transiting through Singapore Changi Airport from South Africa on Nov 11.The cargo «bore similarities» to a previous shipment seized by NParks on Nov 8 and found to contain 35.7kg of rhino horns worth $1.13 million and other animal parts, it added.Following an assessment, NParks did not seize the shipment but instead coordinated with the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and initiated a controlled return of the shipment to South Africa to enable further investigation. On Dec 1, the DPCI's Serious Organised Crime Investigation’s Wildlife Trafficking Unit launched an operation which traced the shipment to a storage facility in Johannesburg. There, four boxes containing 17 rhinoceros horns weighing 55.4kg, along with 26.2kg of lion and tiger bones, including skulls and claws, were seized.

Households will see lower electricity and gas bills from January to March, following a drop in energy and fuel costs. Electricity tariffs for households will go down by 0.84 cent per kilowatt-hour (kWh), while gas tariffs will decrease by 0.67 cent per kWh, before goods and services tax (GST).  PHOTO: SP Group In a statement on Tuesday (Dec 30), grid operator SP Group said the electricity tariffs, including for non-households, will decrease by 3.1 per cent from the previous quarter. Families living in four-room flats can expect a decrease by $3.17 before GST on their average monthly electricity bill. In another statement on the same day, gas provider City Energy said that the gas tariff for households will drop by 0.67 cent per kWh, from 22.35 cents to 21.68 cents, from January to March. 

SINGAPORE - The Hindu community now has a sheltered space to perform seaside rituals for their departed loved ones with the opening of a new facility at Changi Beach.Announced five years ago, Karma Kaariya Nilaiyam - a one-storey building with four private halls - was officially launched on Dec 29 and is located next to Carpark 2 of the beach.Families can book the private halls online to carry out post-death Hindu rites or Karumathi prayers, performed on the 13th or 16th day after cremation, said the Hindu Endowments Board (HEB), which funds and manages the facility.Previously, most families would place a mat on the ground at Changi Beach to prepare for and carry out the rituals, typically in the pre-dawn hours. This left them exposed to a dark environment, heavy rain and winds, HEB secretary Satish Appoo told the media on Dec 29.Families had to take along their own light sources, and the only sheltered spaces available were empty beach pavilions, he added.«This facility provides a calm, dignified and respectful environment. Families are still mourning, so they need privacy to focus on these rituals,» added Satish.

A Malaysian man linked to an organised criminal group in Cambodia that scammed Singaporeans was arrested on Sunday (Dec 28). The 24-year-old is purportedly involved with the 27 Singaporeans and seven Malaysians wanted by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) over their alleged involvement with that group.The police said in a news release on Dec 29 that Eugene Goh was arrested while trying to enter Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint.Checks by AsiaOne against the list of 34 persons wanted by SPF indicate that Goh's name was not among those listed.According to the police's statement, Goh's involvement was established through ongoing investigations against the 34-man organised crime group. Goh is the second Malaysian to be arrested in relation to the scam ring. 

Two teenagers riding a personal mobility device (PMD) were taken to hospital following an accident in Yishun on Sunday evening (Dec 28).Dashcam footage of the accident, shared on the Facebook group SG Road Vigilante, showed the two 13-year-olds dressed in black riding a black PMD, with one riding pillion. The PMD did not have its headlights switched on.The car was believed to have been making a right turn when the collision occurred, sending both riders flying. The impact also scattered debris across the road.Responding to queries from AsiaOne, the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force said that they were alerted to an accident involving a PMD and a car at the junction of Yishun Ring Road and Yishun Avenue 2 at about 11.10pm. A 13-year-old male PMD rider and his 13-year-old male pillion were taken conscious to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.Under the Active Mobility Act, motorised personal mobility devices are not allowed to be used on roads. First-time offenders face a fine of up to $2,000 and/or a jail term of up to three months.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) announced it will seek a new operator for One Punggol Hawker Centre in January 2026 after the current operator cut its tenancy short.In a statement on Monday (Dec 29), NEA said that One Punggol Hawker Centre's current operator, Timbre + Hawkers, will conclude its tenancy on Aug 14, 2026 — one year before its current term was scheduled to end.Timbre is in its second term, having completed two of the three years.«Timbre had indicated that the tenancy posed challenges for its ongoing operations at One Punggol Hawker Centre,» the agency said, adding that it came to a mutual agreement with Timbre on its end date.In a separate statement, Timbre said that the decision was made after «taking into account overall operational considerations and prevailing market conditions».One Punggol Hawker Centre opened in 2022 and current has 31 hawkers, according to its website.New operator will retain existing stallholders: NEAAccording to NEA, Timbre has committed to upholding the vibrancy of One Punggol Hawker Centre until the conclusion of its tenancy.

A man who drove a bus along the Pan Island Expressway at 79kmh is among six motorists to be charged on Tuesday (Dec 30) for speeding offences involving heavy vehicles. The 30-year-old was driving towards the East Coast Parkway on Aug 31 and exceeded the vehicle's speed limit of 60kmh, the police said in a statement on Monday. The offences by the six motorists were allegedly committed between August and October. The suspects, who are aged between 30 and 50, were driving heavy vehicles which were not fitted with speed limiters. Two of the cases involved buses, three involved cement mixers and one involved a tipper truck. The motorists were caught driving at speeds which exceeded the imposed limits of their vehicles. Those convicted of speeding can be fined up to $1,000, jailed for up to three months, or both. Subsequent convictions will lead to a higher fine and jail term. Offenders may also face disqualification from driving all vehicles.The number of speeding violations surged 45.5 per cent in the first half of 2025 from the same period the previous year, with more than 118,000 offences recorded. 

A 70-year-old male car driver is assisting with police investigations following a hit-and-run accident in Ang Mo Kio on Sunday (Dec 28). The police told AsiaOne that they were alerted to the accident involving two cars and a lorry at Block 223 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 at about 8.20pm. Dashcam footage shared on the SG Road Vigilante Facebook page shows a red Porsche reversing out of its parking lot, before ramming into a stationary lorry next to it. The car reverses and then moves forward again, this time hitting a BMW parked two lots away — causing a severely dented bumper.  No injuries were reported from the accident, said the police. [[nid:726635]]chingshijie@asiaone.com 

A woman's trip on low-cost airline Scoot took an unexpected turn when a gift box fell from an overhead compartment and injured her during a six-hour flight to Singapore last month. The passenger, 43-year-old accountant Dong Mingming (transliteration) was seated in seat 13B on Scoot flight TR187 from Qingdao, China to Singapore on Nov 5. Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Dong said the incident took place about half an hour after takeoff, when she had removed her glasses and closed her eyes to rest. A male passenger opened the overhead luggage compartment and a heavy object fell out, striking her right eyelid. «I immediately felt a sharp pain and I couldn't open my eyes at all; my vision became blurry,» said Dong. She later learned that a gift box had fallen from the overhead compartment. Noticing that her eyelid was bleeding, the flight attendants offered her ice and alcohol wipes. «Because of the eye injury, I dared not move around rashly,» added Dong. After the flight landed at Changi Airport, Dong sought medical treatment at Singapore General Hospital.