Former chief of India’s external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), K. Shankaran Nair, passed away in his sleep. He was 94 years old and survived by a daughter, with whom he was staying in the city for the past eight years. His wife passed away three years ago.

K. Shankaran Nair, from Ottapalam village in Kerala, was part of the Intelligence Bureau and was later inducted into Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in 1968, as the deputy to Rameshwarnath Kao, its founder. As Mr. Kao’s deputy, Shankaran Nair is credited with the success of the 1971 Bangladesh war. Under his leadership, RAW helped find the guerrilla fighters troupe Mukti Bahini and train them.

Mr. Nair succeeded R N Kao, as the chief of RAW in 1977. He resigned just three months after taking over, protesting against the then Prime Minister Morarji Desai downgrading the post of chief of RAW, to director from Secretary (R), earlier. Mr. Nair played a crucial role restructuring RAW in 1980 after Indira Gandhi returned to power. He was later appointed as India’s High Commissioner to Singapore in 1986 and served till 1988.

Mr. Nair wrote his memoir Inside IB and RAW: The rolling stone that gathered moss in 2008, considered to be one of the definitive insider accounts of the initial days of post-independent Indian intelligence and RAW.

RAW

• The Research and Analysis Wing is the primary foreign intelligence agency of India.
• It was created after the Sino-Indian War 1962 and Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 which exposed gaps in intelligence gathering undertaken by the Intelligence Bureau.
• The primary function of R&AW is gathering foreign intelligence and counter-terrorism.
• In addition, it is responsible for obtaining and analysing information about foreign governments, corporations and persons to advise Indian policymakers.
• Headquartered in New Delhi, RAW’s current chief is Rajinder Khanna, a 1978-batch IPS cadre officer.