# 1972 in Singapore

The following lists events that happened during 1972 in Singapore.

## Incumbents

* President: Benjamin Henry Sheares
* Prime Minister: Lee Kuan Yew

## Events
### January

* 1 January – The Post Office Savings Bank is turned into a statutory board. This allows the bank more freedom to run its operations.

### February

* 7 February – The National Wages Council is set up to ensure sustainable wages. This comes after wages have risen quickly the previous year.

### April

* 1 April – The Telephone Department is converted into a statutory board called the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore.
* 2 April – The Singapore Grand Prix is won by Max Stewart.

### May

* 12 May – The National Productivity Board is formed to encourage productivity.

### June

* 15 June – The SAF Act comes into effect, allowing for effective management of the Singapore Armed Forces. The Act merges the air, sea and land vocations and establishes the Armed Forces Council.

### July

* 2 July – Singapore Armed Forces Reservist Association is officially launched.
* 20 July – The Stop at Two policy is unveiled to encourage people to have smaller families.

### August

* 17 August – Work starts on the Brani Naval Base.

### September

* 1 September – The Sentosa Development Corporation is formed to manage Sentosa and the outlying islands to attract tourists.
* 2 September – The People's Action Party wins the 1972 General Election.
* 15 September – The first Merlion Park is officially opened.
* 18 September – 22-year-old Chan Chee Chan is shot dead while walking through Queenstown; the crime remains unsolved.

### October

* 1 October – Singapore Airlines starts its first flights.
* 13 October – Heavy fog, an environmental phenomenon that had built up since the beginning of the month, causes gridlock and other problems throughout Singapore.
* 24 October – Disincentives are announced to nudge families into having only two children, taking effect on 1 August 1973. Among them are progressive reduction of income tax relief to the first three children; increase in childbirth fees depending on births; reduction of paid maternity leave from three to two confinements; and lowering priority of HDB flats allocations for large families (more than two children).

### November

* 21 November – A fire engulfs the Robinson's Department Store, causing 9 deaths. In addition, the impact of the fire damaged the roof of the Overseas Union Bank building and forced the Stock Exchange to stop trading for the day. As a result, this makes the fire one of the worst in Singapore's history.

### December

* 15 December -
** OCBC acquires Four Seas Communications Bank.
** SATS Ltd is established as a separate company from Singapore Airlines to manage ground operations and inflight catering services.

### Date unknown

* The OG building is officially opened.
* Three Rifles Holdings is founded, becoming a company selling clothes.
* Specialists' Shopping Centre is opened in Orchard Road. It has since been demolished.
* The first Guardian store is opened by Cold Storage.
* Shaw Centre is opened.

## Births

* 22 February – Dasmond Koh, actor.
* 26 April – Diana Ser, journalist, media personality.
* 27 May – Lynn Ban, jewellery designer (died 2025)
* 15 September – Kit Chan, singer.
* 30 September – Darren Lim, actor.
* 6 November – Janil Puthucheary, politician.
* 18 December – Lawrence Wong, Prime Minister.
* Alvin Pang - poet.

## Deaths

* 4 April – Lionel Chan – racing driver, 28 (injuries sustained in a crash during the Singapore Grand Prix)
* 5 May – Chen Su Lan – one of Singapore's first local medical graduates, philanthropist, social reformer (b. 1885).
* 5 September – Bashir Ahmad Mallal – founder of Malayan Law Journal (b. 1898).
* 11 September – Tan Lark Sye – former chairman of the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan and founder of the Nanyang University (b. 1897).