PUB has temporarily suspended operations at its Johor River Waterworks treatment plant as a precaution, after reports of pollution in the Johor River.In response to media queries, the national water agency added on Saturday (Nov 1) that water supply in Singapore remains unaffected as it has stepped up production at local plants to meet demand.According to a Bernama report on Friday, Malaysia's Environment Department (DOE) had investigated the incident and confirmed that a «bund silt pond» had been damaged, believed to be caused by sand dredging activities in upstream Sungai Johor.The damage caused silt to flow into the river, according to Johor DOE director Dr Mohd Famey Yusoff in a statement.He said that the Johor water regulatory body, Badan Kawalselia Air Johor (Bakaj), had ordered the sand dredging operation to be stopped immediately and repair works to be carried out, but «the escaped 'silt' could not be contained as it continued to flow into the river».

Two Singaporeans were arrested after the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) conducted two separate operations on Thursday (Oct 30), seizing about $4,920 in cash and a total of 115 e-vaporiser pods and 13 e-vaporisers believed to contain etomidate.In a statement on Friday (Oct 31), CNB said it acted on a tip-off and arrested a 42-year-old Singaporean man at his Yishun Ring Road residence for suspected drug offences.A search of the unit uncovered vape-related products and about $3,900 in cash. Suspecting that the man had discarded items down the kitchen rubbish chute, officers searched the chute linked to the unit and recovered 109 e-vaporiser pods and 11 e-vaporisers believed to contain etomidate.On the same day, CNB officers conducted an operation at another residential unit in the vicinity of Fernvale Lane, which led to the arrest of a 31-year-old Singaporean woman for suspected drug offences.

About 500,000 personnel from the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will see an increase in their group insurance scheme from Nov 1.The coverage will go up to $350,000 each, from $300,000. In a joint statement on Friday (Oct 31), the two ministries said that coverage will increase for both the Group Term Life and Group Personal Injury insurance for full-time national servicemen, eligible operationally ready national servicemen, eligible regulars, and eligible volunteers in the ministries as well as the Home Team.«Insured individuals who wish to increase their coverage or insure their dependants can purchase additional coverage from the appointed insurance company, Singlife,» the statement said.The scheme was introduced in 2016.In January 2023, coverage under each policy for all service personnel and eligible volunteers was increased from $150,000 to $300,000. [[nid:724001]]xingying.koh@asiaone.com

In the face of global uncertainties and with multilateralism under pressure, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) grouping's mission to champion free and open trade and investments in the Asia-Pacific region «is now more important than ever,» said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Friday (Oct 31). He was speaking at the first session of the Apec economic leaders' meeting (AELM) being held in Gyeongju, South Korea.The non-binding 21-member grouping accounts for 50 per cent of global trade and contributed 61 per cent of real gross domestic product in 2023. Said PM Wong: «Apec can make a difference by embracing the spirit of cooperation, being pragmatic, and staying forward looking. »Doing so will deliver tangible outcomes for our economies, while reinforcing the rules-based global order."

SINGAPORE - Minister for Sustainability and Environment Grace Fu has made it to the Time100 Climate 2025 list, which highlights the most influential leaders driving business climate action.Fu, who is also Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations, was recognised for the Singapore government's significant investments and plans to prioritise nature in the Republic and help the city adapt to climate change.She was named on the list on Oct 30, along with others like Pope Leo XIV, Suriname president Jennifer Geerlings-Simons and actor Samuel L. Jackson, in the third edition of the annual list by New York-based magazine Time.The list lauds decision-makers, executives, researchers and innovators who have unlocked funding and resources needed for climate action, despite a year beleaguered by geopolitical conflicts and trade tensions.It comes less than two weeks ahead of the COP30 UN talks in Brazil, where governments of nearly 200 countries will discuss how to limit climate change and prepare for its impacts.

About 500 car parks in HDB estates across the island experienced technical issues with their parking systems on Friday (Oct 31).In a Facebook post on Oct 31, HDB said it is currently investigating the cause of the issue.«In the meantime, we have lifted the barrier arms of affected parking gantries to allow motorists to enter and exit the car parks expeditiously,» said HDB. It added that it is working closely with service providers to resolve the issue as soon as possible.According to comments on the Facebook group TADA Drivers Club, one user noted that when he returned home at 12pm, there was a long queue to enter the car park.Others added that drivers had to alight from their vehicles to manually lift the barrier arms in order to enter and exit the car parks.AsiaOne has reached out to HDB for more information. This is a developing story.[[nid:705330]]xingying.koh@asiaone.com

With the rise in traffic offences, new Traffic Violation Enforcement Cameras (TVECs) have been rolled out islandwide to commence progressive testing and calibration to detect various traffic violations.Speaking to the media at the Traffic Police (TP) headquarters in Ubi on Thursday (Oct 30), Inspector Toh Xin Le, team leader of the patrol team, said: «These cameras enforce against traffic violations such as illegal U-turns and crossing of double white lines.»The TVEC, which was first implemented in September for trials, uses Video Analytics (VA) and automatic number plate recognition to detect and capture traffic offences in real time.«It is capable of detecting movement patterns and identifying violations such as crossing double white lines, red light offences, violations of directional signs and vehicles stopping in yellow boxes,» said the police in a statement. 

A shop in Yishun selling personal mobility devices (PMDs) was recently raided by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).In a Facebook post on Thursday (Oct 30), the authority said the retailer is suspected of illegally modifying PMDs by adding extra batteries.Active mobility enforcement officers (AMEOs) seized three non-compliant devices during a raid on Oct 29. Investigations into the retailer are ongoing.«We'll continue to take firm action against retailers and individuals suspected of offering illegal device modification services,» said LTA, adding that unapproved alterations put PMD users and the public at risk.Individuals are urged to only buy compliant devices from trusted retailers and to check second-hand devices for defects and modifications before buying.Members of the public can report errant retailers or path users at www.lta.gov.sg/feedback, and LTA will take into consideration the feedback in planning enforcement operations.

Six properties and various financial assets worth over $150 million were seized by police following an island-wide operation against China-born Cambodian businessman 38-year-old Chen Zhi, the founder and chairman of Prince Holding Group.Police said in a statement on Friday (Oct 31) that the operation on Thursday (Oct 30) was in relation to alleged offences of money laundering and forgery.In a statement on Oct 14, US Department of Justice had accused Chen of being the «mastermind behind a sprawling cyber fraud empire operating under the Prince Group umbrella».Calling it a «criminal enterprise» built on human suffering, Assistant Attorney-General for National Security John Eisenberg said: «Trafficked workers were confined in prison-like compounds and forced to carry out online scams on an industrial scale, preying on thousands worldwide.»