V.O.C. Birthday celebrated in Tuticorin

The birth anniversary of the great freedom fighter V.O.Chidambaram was celebrated across the district with grandeur on Wednesday.

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, garlanded the statue of V.O. Chidambaram on Ayyalu Naicker Street here. He recollected the deeds of V.O.Chidambaram as a freedom fighter, lawyer and a trade union leader. Born on September 5, 1872 at Ottapidaram in the district, Vulaganathan Ottapidaram Chidambaram holds the credit for launching the first indigenous steam navigation company, which ran a shipping service between Tuticorin and Colombo.

The dignitaries present remembered Chidambaram’s contribution as a lawyer who often pleaded for the poor, at times turning up in the cases where his father appeared for the affluent.

The Project Officer of Mahilar Thittam, M. Madasamy, and the president of V.O.C Statue Formation and Maintenance Committee, P. Vedanayakam, were present.

A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust, paid homage to V.O. Chidambaram, as part of the celebrations organized by the TPT.

Sweets were distributed to students at Harbor School and port employees. At a seminar organized by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Association, resources persons spoke on the literary works of Chidambaram.