Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple: A Historic Hindu Temple in Singapore’s Little India
Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple is one of the oldest and largest Hindu temples in Singapore, located in the ‘Little India’ area, which has a large population of Indian nationals. The temple dates back to the late 1800s when community leaders like Arunachala Pillay, Cootaperumal Pillay, Ramasamy Pillay, Appasamy Pillay, Chockalingam Pillay, and Ramasamy Jamidar, who had ties with the East India Company, wanted to build a Hindu temple for Vaishnavite worship.
In 1851, these leaders purchased a piece of land from the East India Company for 26 rupees and 8 annas. The temple, initially called Narasinga Perumal Kovil, was built in 1885. Ganesan, a long-time resident of Singapore, mentioned that the temple is very popular among the Hindu community and also has a marriage hall.
Following the original construction, two additional parcels of land were acquired for the temple. In 1894, Moona Sithumbaram Pillay and Vinasithamby Murugesu donated a 25,792 square feet piece of land. In 1912, the Mohammedan Hindu Endowments Board obtained another 3,422 square feet of land on a 999-year lease.
Another Indian national from Tamil Nadu, who has been in Singapore since 1995, highlighted that the temple is a heritage site and attracts tourists from all over the world. He also noted that ‘Little India’ offers a variety of groceries, food, ornaments, and jewelry.
The original temple structure remained unchanged until the early 1950s. In 1952, the MHEB decided to rebuild the temple, and the redevelopment was financed by philanthropist P Govindasamy Pillay. The new structure, including a two-storey marriage hall, was officially opened in 1965 by Singapore’s first president, Enche Yusoff Bin Ishak.
In 1966, the temple was renamed ‘Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple’ after changing the main deity from Lord Narasimha to Lord Srinivasa Perumal.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Singapore for a bilateral visit. He will meet with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong. Several MoUs are expected to be signed during the visit, focusing on areas like advanced manufacturing, digitalization, and sustainable development.
This visit follows a recent India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable, where various areas of cooperation were identified, including digitization, skills development, sustainability, health, advanced manufacturing, and connectivity.
Doubts Revealed
Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple -: This is a Hindu temple in Singapore, where people go to pray and worship. It is named after a form of the Hindu god Vishnu.
Little India -: Little India is a neighborhood in Singapore where many Indian people live and work. It has many shops, restaurants, and temples that reflect Indian culture.
1885 -: This is the year when the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple was built. It means the temple is very old, more than 100 years old.
Narasinga Perumal Kovil -: This was the original name of the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple. ‘Kovil’ means temple in Tamil, a language spoken in India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi -: He is the leader of India, like the head of the government. He makes important decisions for the country.
advanced manufacturing -: This means using new and smart technology to make things in factories. It helps make better products faster and more efficiently.
digitalization -: This means using computers and the internet to do things that used to be done by hand or on paper. It makes things faster and easier.
ministerial roundtable -: This is a meeting where important people from the government talk about important topics. In this case, it was between leaders from India and Singapore.
