The Parsi Lodge Charity is the name given to a charitable Trust Endowment which was created in 1829, primarily “to furnish a burial ground for Parsis”. The Trust today consists of a building, the Parsi cemetery and investments in bonds and fixed deposits.
Description
At the time, the trust property consisted of a piece of land near Tanjong Pagar for the burial of Parsis. Mr. Pestonjee and Mr. Muncherjee were the first two Parsis to administer the trust. In 1848, a bungalow was erected on an adjoining piece of land and it also formed part of the Trust. The bungalow, informally known as the Parsi Lodge, was built to provide lodging for Parsi traders traveling from China and to host Zoroastrian religious ceremonies. In 1908 the building was torn down and replaced by the Palmer Godowns. The government of Singapore purchased the burial ground and the lodge adjacent to Parsi Road at Tanjong Pagar in April 1969.
Management
When the last two trustees, Nanabhoy Framjee and Rustomjee, left in 1889 to settle in India, the Trust was transferred to the Mohammedan and Hindu Endowment Board. With the establishment of the Parsi Association of Malaya on 29 May 1954, the management of the Parsi Lodge Charity was returned to the community.
When the Trust was handed over to the Parsi Association to appoint their own trustees to manage and administer the Trust, the association petitioned the High Court to appoint the Public Trustee, as the sole Trustee. On 27 May 1969, the administration of the Parsi Lodge Charity was transferred to the Public Trustee Office. The Public Trustee is authorised “to apply the Funds… towards the improvement and upkeep of the Parsi Cemetery; …for defraying expenses of religious ceremonies and providing for scholarships for Parsi Zoroastrians…resident in Singapore;… and for medical benefits or housing for needy Parsis”. A Committee of Management is elected annually at the Annual General Meeting of The PZAS.
Currently, the Trust consists of a building standing at the Parsi Cemetery on Choa Chu Kang Road (Government-owned land), and also of investments in bonds and fixed deposits.