Hindu Endowments Board (HEB) is a statutory board set up under the Hindu Endowments Act in 1968. The Hindu Endowments Board comprises a Chairman, a Vice-Chairman, a Finance Member and 12 members who are appointed by the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth. To be appointed, a member must be both a Singapore citizen and a Hindu. Appointments are for a period of three years each. The Secretary of the Board is a public officer appointed by the Minister.

The endowments administered by the Board are as follows:
1. Sri Mariamman Temple;
2. Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple;
3. Sri Sivan Temple;
4. Sri Vairavimada Kaliamman Temple
5. Saraswathy Kindergarten;
6. Saraswathy Darma Muneeswaran Kindergarten;
7. HEB-Ashram &
8. Little India Arcade.

Major Hindu festivals like Thaipusam (தைப்பூசத் திருவிழா) and Theemithi Thiruvizha தீமிதி திருவிழா (Fire walking Festival) are organized by the Board.

1. The problems faced during Thaipusam festival were partially due to HEB’s incompetencies in managing the event. Thus, the public feels that HEB are not taking their positions seriously.

2. The prohibitions on playing musical instruments during Thaipusam foot processions are long outstanding issues which the board members have yet to address.

3. Head Shaving Rituals (Sri Thendayuthapani Temple) - The devotee has to pay a fee of about $10 to get a receipt. Then they proceed to have their head shaved. After which they have to pay a tips ranging from $5 to $10 to the barber. The price for a head shave at a normal barber ranges from $7 to $10. Moreover, these barbers are work permit holders and carrying out a barber’s job which contradicts with the Employment of Foreign Manpower (Work Passes) Regulations 2012. Devotees have to pay unreasonable prices for a head shaving ritual. HEB being a statutory board can/could advise the temple committee to control the prices for head shaving rituals at normal prices. Deploy local barbers (Malay, Chinese or Indian) to perform the head shaving so as to give our Singaporean barbers an opportunity to make some extra cash which could offset the shop rentals. Solution for Free Head Shaving Rituals

4. Thaipusam Feedback Sessions – In view of the Thaipusam scuffle 2015, several sessions were held to collate feedback but till to-date have not received a reply/response from HEB. Questions by members of the public have not been answered and the Hindu community are left in suspense.

5. Feedback sessions – Rather than holding one Thaipusam feedback session, HEB held several sessions which determines their incompetency in organizational skills.

6. HEB members failed to show leadership qualities when an incident happens during a festival or ceremony.

7. HEB have failed during event deployments like Thaipusam and Theemithi festivals. Professionalism was not adhered in areas of safety and security. Their volunteers lack communication skills in areas of approach, apprehend and appreciation of situations.

8. Public service standards in replying to emails and feedbacks are very poor.

9. Water points (Thaneer Panthal) were situated at a location whereby attendees are unable to access it due to needless barriers at the Tank road vicinity.

10. HEB have failed to address the issue of space constraint with regards to the allocation of road space for foot processions during Thaipusam. Only one lane is allocated and the barricade takes up a certain amount of space.

11. The present committee seems not to be interested in matters pertaining to Hinduism and Hindus.

12. Temples are run like a corporation nowadays. Even for simple matters of finding out yearly tithi of someone who has passed on, the priests ask for $20-$50. No proper rules and regulations in Temples.

13. The priest treats friends or regular devotees differently from the rest. Many priests seem to take their jobs only as money making tool and hardly show any true concentration when conducting the prayers.

14. HEB committee members SHOULD be well versed in Hinduism and be able to guide the community and Ensure that our Temples are run according to Hindu scriptures.

15. After action review protocols must be taken up & SOP must be drafted for the purpose of transparency & for better work process.

16. In the recent Theemithi Festival 2015 (Fire walking Festival), a stampede occurred outside Sri Mariamman Temple and a 61 year old suffered multiple injuries and was sent to Singapore General Hospital in an ambulance and warded for medical treatments. No proper crowd control was observed at the vicinity. Stomper Maggi was disappointed with the committee members for organising an event with no proper safety protocols that endangered an old man's life. She has ascertained that the facts are true and confirmed that Indian nationals were deployed for crowd control duties. We want HEB to foot the medical bills which has occurred. STOMP Article

17. Why HEB didn’t deploy professional security personnel from Cisco or Aetos for crowd control duties? It’s question which needs to be addressed. Proper transparency and accountability should be carried out.

The above mentioned 17 pointers determines that the Current Hindu Endowments Board is incompetent and should step down, thus making way for a new committee to be formed. The new committee should comprise of BORN Singapore Citizens who would know the ground sentiments better. The purpose of this petition being raised is due to questions which were unanswered to-date with regards to Thaipusam Feedback sessions. The prolonging problem with HEB is here since 1980s and still couldn’t be resolve in an amicable manner which suits in the public interest. The heartfelt sentiments of the public were never given an opportunity to express and the matter to be resolved.