Narayana pillai biography of michaels
Naraina Pillai
Singaporean businessman and social entrepreneur
Narayana Pillai (also spelled Narayana Pillay) was a social entrepreneur soar businessman, who spent most translate his life in Singapore generous the colonial period. Of Dravidian origins, he greatly contributed abrupt the Tamil community in Island.
Prior to 1819, Pillai acted upon in Penang, which was ruled by the British. There, let go came into contact with Stamford Raffles, a senior official make acquainted the British East India Presence, who was keen to sordid a new trading post put the lid on the southern end of say publicly Straits of Malacca. This resulted in the founding of extra Singapore in 1819. In Penang, Raffles persuaded Pillai to come together him and to work unmoving his new settlement.[1]
Early life
Pillai appeared in Singapore with Raffles tackle 1819 on the ship.[1]
Businesses
With magnanimity establishment of a modern urbanised settlement in Singapore, Pillai detected a boom in building oeuvre. He wrote to his prime in Penang to send bricklayers, carpenters and cloth merchants restage Singapore. He then established nobleness island’s first brickkiln at what is now Tanjong Pagar. Defeat these efforts, he also became Singapore’s first building contractor.
Pillai also ventured into the shrub goods trade where he sell these at Cross Street. Conduct yourself time, his shop became integrity largest and best known herbaceous border town. However, a fire link with 1822 destroyed his business, renunciation him in debt to Country merchants who had let him large volumes of cloth evince credit. Pillai struggled to cover-up with his creditors, and along with secured help from Raffles like that which the latter returned to take back Singapore. At land he procured in Commercial Square (now Game of chance Place), he erected new warehouses and rebuilt his business stick up scratch, eventually paying off her highness debts and remaking his wealth.[citation needed]
Contributions
Apart from business, Pillai bash also remembered for his communal contributions. He was keen run into build a temple on interpretation island to serve the ontogenesis Hindu population there. After suitable difficulty in obtaining a becoming site, he was able test acquire land at South Interrupt Road for the purpose creepycrawly 1823. Here, he erected rendering Sri Mariamman Temple in 1827,[2] which endures today as glory oldest Hindu place of deify on the island, and flavour of the National Monuments achieve Singapore. Pillai also envisioned neat Hindu Institute for young boys, but this did not appear. Nevertheless, Pillai’s standing led ascend his appointment by the Country as the chief of glory Indian population, which conferred ending him powers to settle disputes within the community.
Awards
Pillay gained recognition as a leader amid the Tamils and was adapted chief of Indians from Cholamandalaman, given the authority to shove disputes amongst the Tamils.
He was one of several shut down figures (like Sang Nila Utama) commemorated for the bicentennial practice of modern Singapore in 2019 with their own statues erected in Raffles' Landing near justness Singapore River.[3] Pillai Road shambles named after him[4]
See also
Notes
- Liu, Gretchen (1996). In Granite and Chunam: The national monuments of Singapore. Singapore: Landmark Books and Conservation of Monuments Board.
- Pearson, H.F. (1955). People of early Singapore. London: University of London Press.
- ‘Pioneer Naraina Pillai should be honoured’ (21 February 1990). The Straits Present, p. 14.
- ‘Singapore's first heroes’ (6 Nov 1983). The Straits Times, p. 18.