Indian National Identified As Director Of Singapore Companies That Abandoned Workers

The High Commission of India on Wednesday evening said it is in touch with workers of three Singapore companies that did not pay them for months, as well as with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and Ministry of Manpower (MOM), who are providing assistance to the affected.

Over 400 workers from India and Bangladesh have been abandoned without wages and accommodations by three companies, namely SK Industries, KPA Engineering and VVR Plant Engineering.

One director, who was common for the three firms, has been identified as an Indian national named Ramu Palani Velu, according to a report published by The Straits Times. According to the daily, checks on the corporate intelligence platform Sayari show that Ramu is a director of seven companies here. The firms are listed as providing air-con, plumbing and building services.

Ramu, a permanent resident of Singapore, is said to have left the country.

NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng, representatives from the Migrant Workers' Centre and Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash met the abandoned workers on Wednesday and assured them of help by providing cash, supermarket shopping vouchers, accommodations and jobs.

The workers are getting SGD200 in cash and supermarket shopping vouchers while alternate accommodations are being arranged and job placements are being matched.

The unpaid migrant workers reported to MOM on Monday, saying their employers at KPA Engineering, a company that provides air-con maintenance services, and its related firm SK Industries, were not contactable.

Singapore labour chief Ng said the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management and tripartite partners are working to contact the employers involved in the case.

Ramu took over VVR Plant Engineering, formerly called VMD Integrated, in 2025. The company was previously owned by Indian nationals Ravi Victor and Ravi Vijayarani, and their Singaporean son, Ravi Martin Abraham.

Martin, 23, said the family sold the company to Ramu.

The company was valued for having access to work permits for the specialised process sector -- such permits allow for process construction and maintenance works at locations such as Jurong Island, Singapore's largest processing industry zone.

Martin said, "It is not easy to obtain the permit for new companies, so we thought he bought our family business for that reason." Ramu started his first business, KPA Engineering, in 2014. It was last recorded as having SGD1 million in capital.

Sundaramoorthy Komathy, also an Indian national, served as a company director with Ramu between 2016 and 2018. After he left, Krishnamurthy Sundaramoorthy became a director in 2020. He remains an active director, according to The Straits Times report.

Sam (not his real name), who was hired by KPA Engineering, said the workers knew Ramu as the big boss but the day-to-day operations were handled by an Indian national named Moorthy. "We have been trying to contact Moorthy, but he has not responded," Sam said.

In 2019, Ramu incorporated Comfort Air Engineering, formerly called Velmurugan Trading, with a registered capital of SGD100,000. He is the sole director.

He then registered SK Industries with a capital of SGD200,000 in 2023 and is its sole director, while Sundaramoorthy Komathy is a shareholder.

In 2025, Ramu registered three companies in one single day -- KMS Integrated, GM Integrated and HVS Industries. He is the sole director of these firms.

KMS was registered with a capital of SGD100,000, and GM and HVS had SGD10,000 each.

The Ministry of Manpower has indicated that it is investigating KPA Engineering and SK Industries for possible breaches, according to media reports.