SINGAPORE - There were about 550 cases of hurt to persons in migrant worker dormitories from 2020 to last year.

Such cases include incidents of affray and rioting involving migrant workers, said Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam on Monday (Feb 14).

Ms Foo Mee Har (West Coast GRC) had asked the minister about fights among workers in the dormitories and measures in place to manage such situations.

Mr Shanmugram revealed the figures in a written response to her question, and added that the police work closely with the dormitory operators on safety and security issues.

He said: "The operators are required as part of licensing conditions under the Ministry of Manpower to put in place security arrangements, including access control measures, closed circuit television systems and deployment of security officers.

"When police respond to calls for assistance at dormitories, the officers will assess the situation at the scene and take appropriate actions to preserve order."

Last month, Paneer Vetrivel, 26, an Indian national, was charged with voluntarily causing grievous hurt for allegedly attacking a 37-year-old man with a wooden plank embedded with nails on New Year's Day.

The incident happened near 20 Woodlands Industrial Park E1.

The police had said they were alerted to the fight at a workers' dormitory there, and the victim was found lying motionless with head injuries.

He was taken unconscious to hospital and later died.

In another incident in 2020, two migrant workers from India living in a dormitory in Kranji Crescent got into an argument over a false allegation of sexual behaviour.

One them then bit off the tip of the other's last finger when the argument escalated.

The fingertip was later recovered at the site of the attack, but could not be surgically reattached.