AJPAUL1/4 Proactive
Channel: 50FACES
Date: 15/02/2015

At the Sri Arulmigu Velmurugan Gnanamuneeswarar Temple located in the calm quiet neighbourhood of Sengkang, one cannot miss Mr A J Paul as he is there everyday to go about his duties quietly as the chairman of the temple. This unique temple, which features two main deities, as a result of the combination of three different temples, draws in many visitors, both local and foreign. 

Moving to Singapore in 1953 at thirteen in hopes of further education or career opportunities, Mr Paul unfortunately found that jobs were fairly scarce. Feeling that he had too much free time on his hands and seeing how other races lived together in communities and had formed groups to look after their needs, Mr Paul and several youths like him were motivated to join, the Singapore Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. Though similar to the political party in India, the SDMK focused on the welfare of the Tamil people of Singapore providing community and social service. 

They were even able to arrange for C N Annadurai, a famous politician and orator, to briefly stop at Singapore on his way to Tokyo and deliver a speech to over 12,000 Tamils at the Jalan Besar Stadium. Mr Paul feels that being part of SDMK was truly special and not only were there many volunteers, everyone tried to contribute in some way, even if it was just a small service rendered.