Dr. NR Madhava Menon awarded Padma Bhushan award posthumously

Dr. NR Madhava Menon, credited for having revolutionised legal education in India, has been posthumously conferred the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in India. .A renowned academic who is dubbed the father of modern Indian Legal Education, Dr Menon passed away in May last year at the age of 84 years. .Dr Menon kickstarted the creation of National Law Schools in India, with the establishment of the National Law School of India University (NSLIU), Bangalore and the creation of the 5-year integrated LLB programme..Dr. NR Madhava Menon was born in 1935 and obtained his B.Sc. and B.L. degrees from Kerala University. He completed his LL.M. and Ph.D. from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and MA from Punjab University. Dr. Menon enrolled as an Advocate in Kerala High Court in 1956..He then moved to academics and joined the AMU as faculty in 1960 before working as Professor at the Campus Law Centre..He also served on deputation as Principal of Government Law College, Pondicherry and Secretary of the Bar Council of India Trust..In 1986, Dr. Menon moved to Bangalore at the invitation of Bar Council of India to set up the National Law School of India University wherein, the Five-Year Integrated LL.B. programme was initiated. This led to a revolution in the field of legal education. He served NLSIU as its Founding Vice-Chancellor for 12 years..Subsequently, he was invited by the West Bengal Government to establish a similar law school in Kolkata. This led to the establishment of West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences where he served as the Vice-Chancellor from 1998 to 2003..He was also asked by the Supreme Court to set up National Judicial Academy in Bhopal..He also served two terms as Member of the Law Commission of India. He was Member of the Committee on Criminal Justice Reform and the Committee on Restructuring of Higher Education in India..Dr. Menon has already been conferred with the Padma Shri in 2003 for outstanding public services. Dr. Menon has authored several books on Indian legal education, legal profession and judicial training..The Government of India announced the awardees of the Padma awards on the eve of India's 71st republic day. Among those who have been conferred the awards this year are Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj, both of whom have been conferred the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award. .[View the full list of awardees]