The Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company (SSNC) was one of the first indigenous Indian shipping companies set up during the Indian independence movement. It was started in 1906[1] by V. O. Chidambaram Pillai to compete against the monopoly of the British India Steam Navigation Company (BISNC).[2] It sailed ships between Tuticorin and Colombo until it was liquidated in 1911.

Background

In the early 20th century, the British India Steam Navigation Company (BISNC) had a monopoly over trade in the Indian Ocean region. The merchants of Tuticorin, a port city in South India, decided to break the monopoly. They hired a ship from the Shawline Steam Company to run between Tuticorin and Colombo, the capital of Ceylon. After the intervention of the British Raj, the hired company withdrew the lending.[3]

During this time, V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, a pleader from Tuticorin who was involved in the Swadeshi movement, which argued for self-reliance, started a navigation company as an act of political and financial opposition to the British.[3]

Company

Pillai registered the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company on 16 October 1906 with a capital of ₹10 lakh (worth ₹2,000 crore in 2019 prices) from the issue of 40,000 shares.[3] Pillai formed the company not for profit but for ideals of nationalism. Any individuals in Asia were eligible to hold the shares.[3] Pandithurai Thevar, the zamindar of Palavanatham, bought ₹2 lakh (equivalent to ₹6.6 crore or US$830,000 in 2023) of shares by selling Pambur, a village in his zamin;[4] Thevar became the president and Pillai became the assistant secretary.[3] The objective of the company was to run a ship between Tuticorin and Colombo and also to train Asians in navigation and ship building.[3] Pillai toured throughout India to raise money for the company,[5] while poet Subramanya Bharathi wrote essays about its importance.[6] The first ship, the SS Galia, was purchased from France[5] with the help of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Aurobindo Ghose[7] and arrived in Tuticorin in 1907. The ship travelled between Tuticorin and Colombo and could carry 1300 passengers and 40,000 bags of cargo.[8] The ship bore a flag with the slogan "Vande mataram".[8] It would later be joined by another French ship, the SS Lavo.[5]

A trade war broke out between the SSNC and BISNC; when the BISNC reduced the fare to one rupee, Pillai reduced the fare to 50 paisa. The BISNC then gave free umbrellas to passengers.[9] Due to nationalist sentiment, the SSNC received support from traders and passengers even when the BISNC offered free service.[5] The BISNC, with the help of the British Raj, suppressed the activities of the SSNC by denying it the place and time schedule in the port[10] and delaying the medical and customs clearance of SSNC passengers.[8] In 1908, Pillai was part of a group that planned to celebrate the release of independence advocate Bipin Chandra Pal from prison as Swarajya (self-rule) day.[11] In response, on 12 March 1908, the British arrested Subramania Siva and Pillai on charges of sedition for organising meetings against the government.[12] Pillai was sentenced to two terms of life imprisonment (40 years).[13] During his jail term, the British Raj further suppressed the activities of the company, and shareholders withdrew following harassment from the authorities.[3] The SSNC liquidated in 1911, and one of the ships was sold to its rival British company.[13]

Impact

On 17 June 1911, the collector of Tinnevely District, Robert Ashe, was shot dead at Maniyachchi Junction railway station by Vanchinathan, a member of a secret society.[11] During the trial, it was revealed that Vanchinathan considered Ashe to be responsible for the suppression of the SSNC.[11]

In Tamil Nadu, Pillai is remembered as Kapallotiyya Tamilan (the Tamilan who sailed ships).[14] The Government of India changed the name of the Tuticorin Port Trust to the V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust to honour Pillai's contribution towards the Indian independence movement.[15]

References

  1. ↑ Manian, Ilasai (20 October 2012). "Swadeshi ship on the blue waters of Tuticorin". Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  2. ↑ J, Arockiaraj (25 December 2011). "VOC's descendants found in dire straits". Madurai. TNN. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R.N.Sampath; Pe. Su. Mani (30 August 2017). V.O.Chidambaram Pillai. Publications Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. pp. 50–55. ISBN 978-81-230-2557-5.
  4. ↑ R.N.Sampath; Pe. Su. Mani (30 August 2017). V.O.Chidambaram Pillai. Publications Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. p. 112. ISBN 978-81-230-2557-5.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Indian Navy (1989). Maritime Heritage of India. Notion Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-93-5206-917-0.
  6. ↑ "First call to 'make in India' came from Bharati in 1909". Times of India Blog. 12 September 2016.
  7. ↑ "Doyen of Swadeshi shipping". The Hindu. 22 September 2001. Archived from the original on 28 February 2002.
  8. 1 2 3 Sunil Khilnani (25 February 2016). Incarnations: India in 50 Lives. Penguin Books Limited. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-241-20823-6.
  9. ↑ Augustine, Seline (22 November 2018). "Unsung hero". The Hindu.
  10. ↑ "How Indians fought back on high seas". Times of India Blog. 2 November 2015.
  11. 1 2 3 Venkatachalapathy, A.R. (September 2009). "An Irish link". Frontline. 26 (19).
  12. ↑ S, Mohamed Imranullah (7 July 2014). "Remembering July 7, 1908, the judgement day". The Hindu.
  13. 1 2 "This Fiery Freedom Fighter From Tamil Nadu Challenged the British Raj on the Seas!". The Better India. 2 August 2018.
  14. ↑ Prosperous Nation Building Through Shipbuilding. KW Publishers Pvt Ltd. 15 March 2013. p. 39. ISBN 978-93-85714-81-8.
  15. ↑ "Renaming of Tuticorin Port Trust as V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust". pib.nic.in.
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