Ex-RAW chief Shankaran Nair dies

Hyderabad, Nov 17: Former chief of India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) K Shankaran Nair is said to have passed away in his sleep at Mallige Hospital in Bengaluru early today. Nair was 94 years old. He survived by a daughter. His wife had passed away three years ago. Nair's niece, Aruna Prasad, said, “He was hospitalised at Mallige Hospital, for the past couple of days. He passed away in his sleep.” K. Shankaran Nair, from Ottapalam village in Kerala, was part of the Intelligence Bureau and was later inducted into RAW in 1968. Nair is credited with the success of the 1971 Bangladesh war. He succeeded R N Kao, as the chief of RAW in 1977. He played a crucial role restructuring RAW in 1980 after Indira Gandhi returned to power. He was India’s High Commissioner to Singapore from 1986 to 1988. Nair wrote his memoir 'Inside IB and RAW: The rolling stone that gathered moss' in 2008.