By Tan, Bonny written on 17-Apr-1999
National Library Board Singapore

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Naraina (Narayana) Pillai (Pillay) the first Indian to set foot on Singapore in 1819, who rose from chief clerk at the Treasury to being the first building contractor in Singapore with the Sri Mariamman Temple in South Bridge Road to his credit.

Major accomplishments
Early career
The Indians in Singapore form the third largest community today but when Pillai first came to Singapore in June 1819 on the Indiana with Stamford Raffles, the only Indians were the soldiers that had accompanied Raffles. Attracted by Raffles' persuasive ideals of Singapore, he left Penang only to find he had to start from scratch. Other Indians who had come with him soon returned to their homes in Penang. He began as chief clerk at the Treasury, or shroff, where he checked coins for authenticity. When the Resident's shroff arrived from Malacca, Pillai was discharged.

Brick kiln & building contractor
Noting the rate of houses being built, he started a brick kiln by Mount Erskine (now Tanjong Pagar), writing to his friends in Penang for bricklayers, carpenters and cloth merchants. He thus started Singapore's first brick company and became the first Indian building contractor in Singapore.

Cotton bazar
He also started to sell cotton goods at Cross Street and with the arrival of British merchants who allowed him to hold large amounts of cloth on credit, his bazaar became the largest and most well-known in Singapore. However, in 1822, his bazaar was burnt to the ground in a fire that razed the area. He persuaded the British merchants that he would repay within 5 years. All but John Morgan agreed yet within 2 years Pillai was able to repay Morgan the S$2000 which he owed.

Social contributions
Upon Raffles' return to Singapore, Pillai sought the founder's help, reminding Raffles that it was he who had persuaded Pillai to set his sights for Singapore. In response, Raffles provided him land in the prime city centre at Commercial Square (Raffles Place). Here Pillai built his new godown and built his business afresh. Despite being impoverished, Pillai set the vision of building a Hindu temple, paying some monies for the land. The original site for the "Kling Temple" was at Telok Ayer Street but this did not have the necessary fresh water required for rituals and so a temporary spot was given by Stamford Canal in 1821 before the South Bridge Road site was confirmed in 1823. The Kling Temple is today's Sri Mariamman Temple and has been gazetted as a National Monument. He also had a similar vision for a Hindu Insitute to educate Indian boys.

Awards
He gained recognition as a leader amongst the Indians and was appointed chief of Indians from Cholamandalaman, given the authority to settle disputes amongst the Tamils. 



Author
Bonny Tan



References
Liu, G. (1996). In granite and chunam: The national monuments of Singapore (p. 115). Singapore: Landmark Books and Preservation of Monuments Board.
(Call no.: SING 725.94095957 LIU) 

Pearson, H. F. (1955). People of early Singapore (pp. 103-108).. London: University of London Press.
(Call no.: RCLOS 959.57 PEA) 

Pioneer Naraina Pillai should be honoured. (1990, February 21). The Straits Times, p. 14.

Singapore's first heroes. (1983, November 6). The Straits Times, p. 18.


Further Readings
Brazil, D. (1991). Street smart: Singapore. Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 BRA)

Netto, G. (1961). Indians in Malaya: Historical facts and figures. Singapore: George Netto.
(Call no.: RCLOS 331.62540595 NET)

Samuel, D. S. (1991). Singapore's heritage: Through places of historical interest. Singapore: Elixir Consultancy Service.
(Call no.: SING 959.57 SAM) 



The information in this article is valid as at 1997 and correct as far as we can ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the library for further reading materials on the topic.