In the year 1944 the British took over the Naval base, now named H.M. Naval Base, from the Japanese. Thousands of Hindus from India came here to work.

Inspired by his dream of Lord Murugan with a majestic golden cobra seated below a particular elanthamaran in the swampy mangrove area west of Canberra road, p. karupiah, a worker in the British royal navy dockyard constructed a very simple altar on the auspicious day of pongal in 1962. the tree under which the altar was constructed had six main branches which symbolized its link with Lord Murugan. he also placed pictures of other deities in the altar.