Mr Junardhan, an Indian with a degree in accountancy, is one of almost 150,000 foreigners labouring in Singapore's booming construction sector.

Some complain of poor living conditions, over-work, homesickness and non-payment of wages.

But they say the risks and challenges are outweighed by one thing: the lure of money far greater than anything they could earn at home.

Mr Junardhan, 23, of Andhra Pradesh state, said he has an accountancy degree from a college near his home town but low wages in that profession drove him to put down his pen and pick up his tools overseas.

The Ministry of Manpower says about 145,000 foreigners are employed in the construction sector, where two multi-billion-dollar casino developments, subway lines, residential and other projects have generated high demand for labourers.

The ministry did not provide a breakdown by nationality but many of the workers come from India as well as Bangladesh and Thailand.

The Thai embassy said 47,000 of its nationals are working in Singapore, mostly in construction, while the Bangladeshi embassy said about 40,000 of its citizens are construction workers.

'I could earn S$259 (US$190) a month as a new accountant in India. Here I earn four times that,' Mr Junardhan said.

His friend, Mr R. Guna, told him it would be worth his while to leave his village for the Southeast Asian city-state of high-rise towers and expressways.

'I told him over the phone about the salary I got working in Singapore and managed to convince him,' said Mr Guna, 24.

Other Indian workers said they make S$16-18 a day, also much more than they would get at home.

Non-payment of wages is major issue
The salary is good - when they get it.

Non-payment of wages is 'the number one issue' that construction workers are seeking help with when they call the TWC2 (Transient Workers Count Too) migrant workers' advocacy group, said TWC2 president John Gee.

'It's usually one worker that calls in to seek help but he is usually part of a whole group that has been affected,' Mr Gee said, adding that many non-payment cases involved smaller contractors.

Mr Guna complained he went through 'torture' during his first stint as a construction worker five years ago, with long hours and sometimes no break.

He said his present employer is better and provides packaged meals.

Labourers complain that Singapore's rising inflation, which struck an annual 6.7 per cent in March - the highest in 26 years - is eating into their wages.

'Singapore now is very expensive. I can spend up to seven, eight dollars a day just on food alone,' said Mr R. Tamilmani, 22, who arrived two years ago from India's Tamil Nadu state with his childhood friend V. Muthukrishnan, 26.

As maintenance men at a construction site they each earn S$16 a day, a figure which has remained 'more or less the same,' Mr Muthukrishnan said.

'Price of makan increase, price of Coke increase but my salary still the same,' he said, using the Singaporean Malay word 'makan' for 'eat'.

Mr Junardhan remembers when he could find a five-kilogram bag of rice for S$4.

'Now, it is six dollars or more. Even the beer is expensive now,' he said.

Foreign labourers are a familiar sight on Singapore roads. While local motorists drive around sealed inside their air conditioned cars, overseas workers are transported to their jobs in the back of open trucks.

'It's inherently risky,' said Mr Gee. 'We are trying to persuade the authorities to change the rules and use enclosed vans or buses as an alternative.'

He said workers' accommodation is another major issue. Some labourers live on their work sites in quarters that leave them vulnerable to dust and pollution, he said, adding that employees should ideally be housed away from their workplace.

'It's human to need to get away from work,' he said.

For Mr Junardhan, home is a dormitory.

'We got no choice, so I have to stay in the dormitory. The room is too small and the kitchen gets very dirty and smelly,' he said.

It is also full of mosquitoes, he said, quickly adding that the insects were a small price to pay for working in Singapore.

'I love that Singapore is very safe. You don't get this kind of feeling in India,' he said.

Long hours on the job and a shortage of spare cash limit the workers' options for relaxation.

Rest and relax
But on Sundays and public holidays they crowd into Little India, several blocks of shops and restaurants that are also the throbbing cultural heart of Singapore's own ethnic Indian minority, who make up about nine per cent of the local population.

Thai workers gather around the Golden Mile shopping centre, an ageing mall with Thai karaoke lounges, food stalls and a supermarket that carries delicacies from home.

For Mr Tamilmani and Mr Muthukrishnan, a day off usually means sitting in a field near the Little India subway station, eating snacks and drinking beer imported from home.

'As long as I have my beer I am happy,' said another Indian worker, Mr E. Rajan, 25, savouring his day off.

'I have no free time. I need to save money to send back home,' he said.

Their wallets may get fatter in Singapore, but their hearts remain in India.

'I cannot wait for my contract to finish soon so I can go back to Tamil Nadu,' Mr Tamilmani said.

And then, after a two-month break there, he plans to return to Singapore and work again. -- AFP