Chennai,  Management guru and the founder of Great Lakes Institute of Management Prof Bala V. Balachandran died in the US on Monday, said the Institute.

"With profound grief, we inform you of the passing away of Dr Bala V. Balachandran. Uncle Bala, as he was fondly called, was an inspiration to many. Although we will miss him dearly, we shall carry him in our hearts and live by the value system that he built for us," Great Lakes Institute tweeted.

The 84-year-old Balachandran died after a brief illness.

Born in Pudupatti village in Tamil Nadu, Balachandran did his schooling in Pudukottai district and completed under and postgraduate degrees from the Annamalai University.

Later he started teaching at Annamalai University.

In late 1960s he was offered scholarship to pursue MS/PhD at the University of Dayton, Ohio.

He was appointed as an Assistant Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Dayton.

Subsequently he completed MBA and PhD at Carnegie Mellon University. He then joined the Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University - now Kellogg School of Management.

In 2001, Balachandran was awarded the Padma Shri title for his contribution to higher education by the Indian government.

In 2004, Balachandran founded the Great Lakes Institute of Management located near here.

An affable person Balachandran, preferred to be called as Uncle Bala by his students.

He is survived by his wife and two sons.