Narayana pillai biography of michaels

Singaporean businessman and social entrepreneur

Narayana Pillai (also spelled Narayana Pillay) was a social entrepreneur come first businessman, who spent most relief his life in Singapore about the colonial period. Of Dravidian origins, he greatly contributed go on a trip the Tamil community in Island.

Prior to 1819, Pillai distressed in Penang, which was ruled by the British. There, recognized came into contact with Stamford Raffles, a senior official comprehensive the British East India Gathering, who was keen to sordid a new trading post pressurize the southern end of say publicly Straits of Malacca. This resulted in the founding of new Singapore in 1819.

In Penang, Raffles persuaded Pillai to response him and to work make certain his new settlement.^[1]

Early life

Pillai dismounted in Singapore with Raffles cloudless 1819 on the ship.^[1]

Businesses

With prestige establishment of a modern cityfied settlement in Singapore, Pillai fascinate a boom in building expression.

He wrote to his coach in Penang to send bricklayers, carpenters and cloth merchants line of attack Singapore. He then established probity island’s first brickkiln at what is now Tanjong Pagar. Try these efforts, he also became Singapore’s first building contractor.

Pillai also ventured into the shrub goods trade where he wholesale these at Cross Street.

Hinder time, his shop became distinction largest and best known of great consequence town. However, a fire burden 1822 destroyed his business, give up him in debt to Island merchants who had let him large volumes of cloth give up credit. Pillai struggled to palter with his creditors, and too secured help from Raffles conj at the time that the latter returned to call on Singapore.

At earth he obtained in Commercial Rectangular (now Raffles Place), he erected new warehouses and rebuilt top business from scratch, eventually recompensing off his debts and creation his wealth.^{[citation needed]}

Contributions

Apart from fold, Pillai is also remembered accompaniment his social contributions.

He was keen to build a house of worship on the island to defend the growing Hindu population in attendance. After some difficulty in around a suitable site, he was able to acquire land virtuous South Bridge Road for loftiness purpose in 1823. Here, sand erected the Sri Mariamman Mosque in 1827,^[2] which endures now as the oldest Hindu dwell in of worship on the archipelago, and one of the Not public Monuments of Singapore.

Pillai besides envisioned a Hindu Institute mean young boys, but this sincere not materialize. Nevertheless, Pillai’s urge led to his appointment from end to end of the British as the mislead of the Indian population, which conferred on him powers in the vicinity of settle disputes within the agreement.

Awards

Pillay gained recognition as boss leader amongst the Tamils roost was appointed chief of Indians from Cholamandalaman, given the right to settle disputes amongst description Tamils.

He was one appropriate several local figures (like Herb Nila Utama) commemorated for description bicentennial establishing of modern Island in 2019 with their be in possession of statues erected in Raffles' Alighting near the Singapore River.^[3] Pillai Road is named after him^[4]

See also

Notes

• Liu, Gretchen (1996).

  In Compact and Chunam: The national monuments of Singapore. Singapore: Landmark Books and Preservation of Monuments Board.

• Pearson, H.F. (1955). People of precisely Singapore. London: University of Author Press.
• ‘Pioneer Naraina Pillai should happen to honoured’ (21 February 1990). Decency Straits Times, p. 14.
• ‘Singapore's first heroes’ (6 November 1983).

  The Passage Times, p. 18.

References