14–22 January - Singapore hosts the 18th Conference of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
29 January – The Preservation of Monuments Board was established to identify and safeguard buildings of great historical value and recommend as national monuments.[4]
February
1 February – The National Sports Promotion Board is formed to promote and develop sports in Singapore.[5]
March
15 March – The Staff Training Institute (now the Civil Service College) is established to train civil servants.[6]
The first Concept Plan is unveiled, which proposes a 'Ring Plan'.[8]
July
14 July – The Jurong Drive-in Cinema is opened as Singapore's first and only open-air drive-in cinema. The cinema operated for 15 years until its closure on 30 September 1985.[9]
30 July – Singapore's first sex reassignment surgery is performed on a 24-year-old who becomes a woman after the surgery, led by Dr S. S. Ratnam. The surgery is declared a success.[10]
2 December – The Clean Air Act is passed to deal with pollution caused by early industrialisation.[14]
29 December – The Gold Bars Triple Murders saw a gold merchant and his two employees robbed and killed by a group of 10 men. Seven of the 10 men were sentenced to death for the crime; the remaining three were indefinitely detained for lengthy periods before their release.[15]
