AryaInIND at 09:40, 30 January 2026

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{{Short description|Indian Administrative Service Officer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = M. K. K. Nair
| image =
| imagesize =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1920|12|29}}
| birth_place = [[Thiruvananthapuram]], India
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1987|9|27|1920|12|29}}
| death_place = [[Ernakulam]], Kerala
| restingplace =
| restingplacecoordinates =
| othername =
| occupation = Bureaucrat
| alma mater = [[University of Madras]]
| spouse =
| domesticpartner =
| children = 3
| parents =
| website =
| awards =
}}
'''Meppally Keshava Pillai Krishnankutty Nair''' (29 December 1920 – 27 September 1987), commonly identified as '''M. K. K. Nair''', was an Indian bureaucrat, art connoisseur and [[Indian Administrative Service]] officer from [[Kerala]]. Besides his services in the setting up of [[Bhilai Steel Plant]] and in the development of [[Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore]], Nair was known for his contributions in promoting fine arts and performing arts such as [[Kathakali]], in the state of [[Kerala]].

== Biography ==
[[File:Panaromic view of FACT Cochin Division.jpg|thumb|235px|FACT Cochin Division]]

M. K. K. Nair was born on 29 December 1920 in [[Thiruvananthapuram]],<ref name="I&B Minister trips on Patel-Nehru chronicler">{{Cite web |url=https://www.dailypioneer.com/2013/page1/iandb-minister-trips-on-patel-nehru-chronicler.html |title=I&B Minister trips on Patel-Nehru chronicler |website=The Pioneer |language=en |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> in the south Indian state of [[Kerala]] to Kesava Pillai and Janaky Amma.<ref name="M.K.K. Nair public profile">{{Cite web |url=https://www.geni.com/people/M-K-K-Nair/6000000012801325239 |title=M.K.K. Nair public profile |date=2019-03-20 |website=geni_family_tree |language=en-US |access-date=2019-03-20}}</ref> After graduating in physics from the [[University of Madras]] in 1939 with first rank, he started his career as a divisional accountant in the civil service of [[Travancore]] where he had the opportunity to work under [[C. P. Ramaswami Iyer]], the then [[Diwan (India)|Diwan]]. Later, he worked as an accountant with the telephone department<ref name="Differences of opinion caused Nehru to look upon Patel as enemy: Nayar book">{{Cite web |url=http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/differences-of-opinion-caused-nehru-to-look-upon-patel-as-enemy-nayar-book/1196260/ |title=Differences of opinion caused Nehru to look upon Patel as enemy: Nayar book |website=archive.indianexpress.com |access-date=2019-03-20}}</ref> before moving to [[Secunderabad]] to join the ordnance factory of the [[Ministry of Defence (India)|Ministry of Defence]] in 1943 as a civilian gazetted officer, one among the first four civilian gazetted officers in the [[British Army]] and served as a planning officer.<ref name="Gained in translation? Patel man's tale">{{Cite web |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/gained-in-translation-patel-mans-tale-minister-tewari-can-check-communalist-account-when-english-version-of-mkks-book-comes-out-soon/cid/241276 |title=Gained in translation? Patel man's tale |website=www.telegraphindia.com |language=en |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> He worked at the ordnance factory until 1947 when he quit the job to appear for the [[Indian Administrative Service]] examination to join the service in 1949 which brought him in contact with [[V. P. Menon]], a senior IAS officer and a close associate of [[Sardar Vallabhai Patel]].<ref name="Autobiography of an administrator, also a political chronicle">{{Cite web |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/autobiography-of-an-administrator-also-a-political-chronicle/article17681824.ece |title=Autobiography of an administrator, also a political chronicle |date=2017-03-27 |website=The Hindu |language=en-IN |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref>

When the commissioning of [[Bhilai Steel Plant]] was getting delayed, the then Indian Prime Minister, [[Jawaharlal Nehru]], on advice from [[T. T. Krishnamachari]] who was the [[Minister of Industries and Commerce]] at that time, appointed Nair with the responsibility of commissioning the plant which was accomplished in 1959.<ref name="Gained in translation? Patel man's tale" /> Subsequently, he returned to his home state of Kerala when he was appointed as the chairman and managing director of the [[Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore]] (FACT) where he stayed until his appointment as a joint secretary in the [[Planning Commission of India]] in 1971.<ref name="Gained in translation? Patel man's tale" />

M. K. K. Nair died on 27 September 1987, at the age of 66, at [[Ernakulam]], succumbing to cancer,<ref name="Differences of opinion caused Nehru to look upon Patel as enemy: Nayar book" /> survived by his wife and their three sons.<ref name="Advani's been misled, now he's misleading us">{{Cite web |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/columns/advani-s-been-misled-now-he-s-misleading-us/story-cL4q9DVAen6X4KZp47vV6O.html |title=Advani's been misled, now he's misleading us |date=2013-11-16 |website=hindustantimes.com |language=en |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref>

== Legacy and honours ==
Nair oversaw the development of Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore into one of the major industrial units in Kerala; it was during his tenure that a new [[Ammonium Sulphate]] plant, FACT Engineering and Design Organisation (FEDO) and FACT Engineering Works (FEW) were set up and the work on the establishment of another production unit in [[Ambalamedu]] was started.<ref name="Evolution - FACT">{{Cite web |url=http://www.fact.co.in/ContentPage.aspx?sid=1 |title=Evolution - FACT |date=2019-03-21 |website=fact.co.in |access-date=2019-03-21 |archive-date=11 May 2014 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140511103711/http://www.fact.co.in/ContentPage.aspx?sid=1 |url-status=dead }}</ref> He developed the FACT community into a self-sufficient one with own schools and hospitals.<ref name="Remembering a visionary, not forgetting his many trials">{{Cite web |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/remembering-a-visionary-not-forgetting-his-many-trials/article4264540.ece |title=Remembering a visionary, not forgetting his many trials |last=Pillai |first=R. Ramabhadran |date=2013-01-02 |website=The Hindu |language=en-IN |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> He was known to have assisted [[Kathakali]] artists such as [[Kalamandalam Hyderali]], [[Kalamandalam Sankaran Embranthiri]], [[Kalamandalam Kesavan]] and [[Kalamandalam Neelakantan Nambisan]] of which Hyderali served as a faculty at the cultural wing of FACT.<ref name="Remembering a visionary, not forgetting his many trials" />

Nair wrote his autobiography, ''Aarodum Paribhavamillathe'' (With Malice Towards None: The Chronicle of an Era), as a weekly article serial in ''[[Kalakaumudi]]'', detailing his experiences during and after his administrative career.<ref name="Autobiography of an administrator, also a political chronicle" /><ref name="MKK Nair - memoirs With No Ill Feeling to Anybody">{{Cite web |url=https://www.geni.com/discussions/131295 |title=MKK Nair - memoirs "With No Ill Feeling to Anybody" |date=2019-03-21 |website=geni_family_tree |language=en-US |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> The book, while narrating his early administrative days, describes the [[Indian annexation of Hyderabad]], code-named ''Operation Polo'' as well as the political differences between [[Jawaharlal Nehru]] and [[Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel]].<ref name="Advani's been misled, now he's misleading us"/><ref name="'You Are A Total Communalist...'">{{Cite web |url=https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/you-are-a-total-communalist/288433 |title='You Are A Total Communalist...' |website=outlookindia.com/ |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> The book was later translated into English by one of his junior colleagues at FACT, Gopakumar M. Nair.<ref name="Nayar2014">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EvGvDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA355 |title=Story of an Era Told Without Ill-will |last1=Nayar |first1=M K K |translator=Gopakumar M. Nair |date=24 February 2014 |publisher=DC Books |isbn=978-93-81699-33-1 |pages=355–}}</ref> The book had another English translation, too, under the title, ''The Autobiography of a Bureaucrat'', and the translation was done by Meena Das Narayan, a writer and the niece of M. K. K. Nair.<ref name="Narendra Modi presented with English translation of late Shri MKK Nair's book 'The Autobiography of a Bureaucrat'">{{Cite web |url=https://www.narendramodi.in/narendra-modi-presented-with-english-translation-of-late-shri-mkk-nair%E2%80%99s-book-%E2%80%98the-autobiography-of-a-bureaucrat%E2%80%99-5807 |title=Narendra Modi presented with English translation of late Shri MKK Nair's book 'The Autobiography of a Bureaucrat' |date=2019-03-21 |website=narendramodi.in |access-date=2019-03-21}}</ref> His life was chronicled as a television series, ''Smruthi'' which was broadcast on [[Safari TV]] in 2017.<ref name="M K K Nair - Smrithi Promo">{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thQTcuN2E8E |title=M K K Nair - Smrithi Promo |last=Safari TV |date=2017-01-19 |website=YouTube |access-date=2019-03-16}}</ref> The Kerala Management Association has instituted an annual lecture, M. K. K. Nair Memorial lecture in his honour<ref name="M K K Nair Memorial Lecture organised">{{Cite web |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/2019/jan/17/m-k-k-nair-memorial-lecture-organised-1926017.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190203161838/http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/2019/jan/17/m-k-k-nair-memorial-lecture-organised-1926017.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 February 2019 |title=M K K Nair Memorial Lecture organised |website=The New Indian Express |access-date=2019-03-16}}</ref> and a community centre in [[Eloor]], the place where he spent the later days of his career, ''MKK Nair Memorial Community Hall'' has been named after him.<ref name="M.K.K. Nair Auditorium - Kochi">{{Cite web |url=http://wikimapia.org/111222/M-K-K-Nair-Auditorium |title=M.K.K. Nair Auditorium - Kochi |website=wikimapia.org |language=en |access-date=2019-03-16}}</ref><ref name="PageKerala.com :: Kerala Business Directory">{{Cite web |url=http://www.pagekerala.com/ |title=PageKerala.com :: Kerala Business Directory |date=2019-03-16 |website=PageKerala.com |language=en |access-date=2019-03-16}}</ref> ''M. K. K. Nair Foundation'', an eponymous organization in his name, has instituted an annual award, ''M. K. K. Nair Award'', for recognising excellence in performing arts.<ref name="Jayaraman2007">{{cite book|author=P. Jayaraman|title=Management Icons|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CXUHFFIGBrgC&pg=PA114|year=2007|publisher=Excel Books India|isbn=978-81-7446-545-0|pages=114–}}</ref>

== CBI case and acquittal ==
In 1974, cases were registered against him by the [[Central Bureau of Investigation]] alleging abuse of power and corruption.<ref name="Gained in translation? Patel man's tale" /> The trial court exonerated him in 1983 and the appeal court acquitted him in 1987, shortly before his death.<ref name="Remembering a visionary, not forgetting his many trials" /> Years later, [[D. Babu Paul]], a former [[Chief secretary (India)|chief secretary]] of the [[Government of Kerala]], while delivering the M. K. K. Nayar Memorial lecture, revealed that Nair was being harassed at the behest of a former prime minister of India who happened to come to know about the disparaging comments that Nair had recorded in his personal diary.<ref name="Powerful leader hounded MKK Nayar: Babu Paul">{{Cite web |url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/230517/powerful-leader-hounded-mkk-nayar-babu-paul.html |title=Powerful leader hounded MKK Nayar: Babu Paul |date=2017-05-23 |website=Deccan Chronicle |language=en |access-date=2019-03-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170523050002/https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/230517/powerful-leader-hounded-mkk-nayar-babu-paul.html |archive-date=23 May 2017}}</ref>

== Bibliography ==
* ''Aarodum Paribhavamillathe'' (DC Book) by M. K. K. Nair
* {{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EvGvDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA355 |title=Story of an Era Told Without Ill-will |author=M. K. K. Nair |translator=Gopakumar M. Nair |date=24 February 2014 |publisher=DC Books |isbn=978-93-81699-33-1 |pages=355}}

== See also ==
{{Div col|colwidth=40em}}
* [[Political integration of India]]
* [[Mir Osman Ali Khan]]
* [[V. J. Kurian]]
* [[Syed Ahmed El Edroos]]
{{div col end}}
{{Portal|India}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thQTcuN2E8E |title=M K K Nair - Smrithi Promo |last=Safari |date=2017-01-19 |website=YouTube |access-date=2019-03-21}}
* {{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iC8ZQt7niE |title=Autobiography of MKK Nair English version published - Manorama News |last=Manorama News |date=2017-03-25 |website=YouTube |access-date=2019-03-21}}
* {{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lknlqUBbDRY |title=Manju warrior's speech During MKK Nair Puraskaram ceremony in Kerala Kalamandalam, Thrissur, Kerala |last=indiayathraonline |date=2018-03-30 |website=YouTube |access-date=2019-03-21}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nair, M. K. K.}}
[[Category:1920 births]]
[[Category:1987 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Thiruvananthapuram district]]
[[Category:University of Madras alumni]]
[[Category:Indian Administrative Service officers]]
[[Category:British Army officers]]
[[Category:Writers from Kerala]]

M. K. K. Nair - Revision history

AryaInIND at 09:40, 30 January 2026