V. O. Chidambaram Pillai (VOC) – Life, Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company & Freedom Struggle | TNPSC Notes

06-09-2022 · English

V. O. Chidambaram Pillai (VOC, 1872–1936) was a lawyer and freedom fighter from Ottapidaram who founded the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 to break the British shipping monopoly between Tuticorin and Colombo. For this he is remembered as Kappalottiya Thamizhan, and for the oil press he was forced to pull in Coimbatore jail he is called Chekkizhutha Chemmal.

தமிழில் படிக்க

These notes are written for TNPSC Group 1, 2/2A and 4 aspirants. VOC is a core topic in Unit VI – History, Culture, Heritage and Socio-Political Movements of Tamil Nadu and also in Unit III – History, Culture of India and Indian National Movement (Swadeshi movement in the South). Read each section, then use the quick revision table and key points at the end.

Early Life, Family and Education

• Full name: Valliappan Ulaganathan Chidambaram Pillai.
• Born: 5 September 1872 at Ottapidaram, then in Tirunelveli district (now Thoothukudi district).
• Parents: Ulaganatha Pillai and Paramayi Ammal; VOC was the eldest son.
• Schooling: studied at Tuticorin (Thoothukudi) and Tirunelveli, and worked for a short time as a clerk in a taluk office.
• Law: studied law at Tiruchirappalli, passed the pleadership examination in 1894 and began practice at Ottapidaram in 1895; he later practised at Tuticorin.

Entry into the Swadeshi Movement

The Partition of Bengal (1905) changed VOC's life. He joined the Swadeshi movement, whose leading figures were Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipin Chandra Pal. VOC belonged to Tilak's Extremist (Nationalist) camp and attended the Surat session of the Congress in 1907, where the Moderate–Extremist split took place.

Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company (1906)

Shipping between Tuticorin and Colombo was controlled by the British-owned British India Steam Navigation Company (BISN). Tuticorin merchants first chartered steamers in early 1906; VOC then built an Indian-owned company of its own.

• Registered: 16 October 1906 as a joint-stock company at Tuticorin.
• Authorised capital: Rs 10 lakh, raised from Indian shareholders and merchants.
• Ships: two steamers, S.S. Gallia and S.S. Lawoe, acquired in 1907.
• Route: Tuticorin – Colombo (passengers and cargo).
• Rivalry: BISN cut fares and offered inducements to merchants, while British officials put pressure on traders and shareholders.
• End: after VOC's imprisonment the company lost support and was liquidated in 1911; its ships were sold.

The venture showed that Indians could run a modern business against a British monopoly – the economic side of Swadeshi.

The Tuticorin–Tirunelveli Events of 1908

• Coral Mills strike: after speeches by VOC and Subramania Siva on low wages and long hours, workers of the British-owned Coral Mills, Tuticorin, struck work from 27 February 1908. The strike lasted about nine days and won higher wages, shorter hours and Sunday leave. It is regarded as one of the earliest organised labour struggles in India.
• Bipin Chandra Pal's release: VOC and Siva planned a public celebration on 9 March 1908 for Pal's release from jail. The Tirunelveli Collector, Wynch, opposed the Swadeshi activities.
• Arrest: VOC and Subramania Siva were arrested on 12 March 1908.
• Riots: on 13 March 1908 violent protests broke out in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin (the "Tinnevelly Riots"); police firing killed four people.

Trial, Sentence and Imprisonment

• Charge: sedition. On 7 July 1908 the Additional Sessions Judge of Tirunelveli, A. F. Pinhey, sentenced VOC to two life sentences of transportation (effectively 40 years). Subramania Siva received 10 years.
• Appeal: the High Court reduced the sentence sharply, and it was reduced further later.
• Jails: Coimbatore Central Prison (from July 1908) and later Kannur (Cannanore) jail.
• Oil press (chekku): in Coimbatore jail he was treated as a hard-labour convict and yoked to an oil press in place of bullocks – the origin of the title Chekkizhutha Chemmal.
• Release: December 1912. His licence to practise law had been taken away, and he came out in poverty.

Ashe Murder, 1911 – The Context

Robert Ashe was a British official in the district who had acted against the Swadeshi company and the 1908 movement. On 17 June 1911, while VOC was still in prison, Ashe (then Collector of Tirunelveli) was shot dead at Maniyachi railway junction by Vanchinathan, who then shot himself. Vanchinathan was linked to the Bharatha Matha Sangam formed by Nilakanta Brahmachari. VOC was not involved; the event is studied as the revolutionary reaction to the repression of 1908.

Associations: Bharathi, Tilak and Subramania Siva

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak: VOC's political guide; VOC followed the Extremist line of swaraj and swadeshi.
• Subramania Bharathi: a close friend and fellow nationalist; VOC visited Bharathi during his exile in Puducherry.
• Subramania Siva: co-worker in the Tuticorin campaign and co-accused in the 1908 sedition case.

Later Life and Labour Work

After release VOC lived in Madras (Chennai), running a small provisions and kerosene shop to support his family. Judge E. H. Wallace later restored his right to practise law. He worked for labour causes – helping postal employees form a union and advising trade unions. After the 1920 Calcutta special session he differed with Gandhi's programme and moved away from the Congress. He later practised law at Kovilpatti and returned to Tuticorin, where he lived his last years in debt.

Literary Works and Tamil Scholarship

• Own works: Meyyaram (1914) and Meyyarivu (1915), both moral-philosophical works; his autobiography was published in 1946.
• Translations of James Allen: Manam Pola Vazhvu (As a Man Thinketh), Agame Puram, Valimaikku Margam and Santhikku Margam.
• Tirukkural: published the Kural with the old commentary of Manakkudavar, and wrote his own commentary on the Kural.
• Tolkappiyam: edited and published Tolkappiyam with Ilampuranar's commentary.
• He also wrote a commentary on Sivagnana Botham.

Death

VOC died on 18 November 1936 at the Indian National Congress office in Tuticorin, in poverty, aged 64.

Honours and Memorials

• Postage stamp: issued on 5 September 1972, his birth centenary (20 paise).
• Port: Tuticorin Port Trust renamed V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust in 2011; it became V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority in 2022.
• Film: Kappalottiya Thamizhan (1961), directed and produced by B. R. Panthulu, with Sivaji Ganesan as VOC; based on Ma. Po. Sivagnanam's 1944 book of the same name.
• Memorials: his birthplace house at Ottapidaram is preserved as a memorial; V.O.C. College, Thoothukudi, is named after him.

Quick Revision Table

Year	Event
1872 (5 Sep)	Born at Ottapidaram
1894–95	Passed pleadership exam (1894); began practice at Ottapidaram (1895)
1905	Partition of Bengal; joins the Swadeshi movement
1906 (Oct)	Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company registered; capital Rs 10 lakh
1907	Steamers S.S. Gallia and S.S. Lawoe acquired; attends Surat Congress (Tilak's camp)
1908 (27 Feb)	Coral Mills strike at Tuticorin begins
1908 (12 Mar)	Arrested with Subramania Siva; riots in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin follow
1908 (Jul)	Convicted of sedition; two life sentences
1908–1912	Coimbatore and Kannur (Cannanore) jails; oil-press labour
1911	Company liquidated; Ashe shot at Maniyachi (17 June)
1912 (Dec)	Released from prison
1914 / 1915	Meyyaram / Meyyarivu published
1920	Moves away from Congress after differences with Gandhi's programme
1936 (18 Nov)	Dies at the Congress office, Tuticorin
1961	Film Kappalottiya Thamizhan (Sivaji Ganesan) released
1972 (5 Sep)	Birth-centenary postage stamp
2011	Tuticorin Port renamed V.O. Chidambaranar Port

TNPSC Key Points (PYQ-style facts)

• Birthplace: Ottapidaram (now Thoothukudi district); born 5 September 1872.
• Titles: Kappalottiya Thamizhan; Chekkizhutha Chemmal.
• Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company: 1906, Tuticorin; rival – British India Steam Navigation Company.
• Ships: S.S. Gallia and S.S. Lawoe; route Tuticorin – Colombo.
• Co-accused in the 1908 sedition case: Subramania Siva.
• Coral Mills strike: Tuticorin, 1908.
• Jails: Coimbatore and Kannur (Cannanore); oil press in Coimbatore jail.
• Political guru: Bal Gangadhar Tilak (Extremist camp).
• Ashe was shot by Vanchinathan at Maniyachi on 17 June 1911.
• Works: Meyyaram, Meyyarivu; translated James Allen; edited Tirukkural (Manakkudavar commentary) and Tolkappiyam (Ilampuranar commentary).
• Died: 18 November 1936, Tuticorin.
• Stamp 1972; V.O. Chidambaranar Port name 2011; film 1961.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is V. O. Chidambaram Pillai called Kappalottiya Thamizhan?

He is called Kappalottiya Thamizhan ("the Tamil who sailed ships") because he founded the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 and ran Indian-owned steamers between Tuticorin and Colombo against the British India Steam Navigation Company.

When and where was VOC born?

He was born on 5 September 1872 at Ottapidaram, then in Tirunelveli district and now in Thoothukudi district. His parents were Ulaganatha Pillai and Paramayi Ammal.

Why was VOC arrested in 1908?

After the Coral Mills strike and a planned meeting to celebrate Bipin Chandra Pal's release, he was arrested with Subramania Siva on 12 March 1908 and tried for sedition. He was given two life sentences, which were reduced on appeal; he was released in December 1912.

Why is he called Chekkizhutha Chemmal?

In Coimbatore Central Prison he was made to do hard labour, including pulling an oil press (chekku) like a bullock. This suffering gave him the title Chekkizhutha Chemmal.

Which port is named after VOC?

Tuticorin Port was renamed V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust in 2011; since 2022 it is called V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority.

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