Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar has asked agriculture scientists to find solutions for problems of farmers in distress.
He was speaking after inaugurating the 57th national conference on Plant Physiology on Plant Productivity and Stress Management, organised by the Indian Society of Plant Physiologists (ISPP) at the Kerala Agricultural University on Thursday. The Minister highlighted the challenge to food security and livelihoods posed by climate vagaries.
Around 350 delegates from all over the country are attending the three-day conference.
“The survival of the farmer should be the focus of all scientific deliberations and if the researches do not address the farmers’ issues, we will be failing both as scientists and as a community. Scientists should not fall prey to the vested interests of industrial lobbies,” he said.
“We do not need any complicated technology that will put more burden on the farmers. What we need is simple, but effective farming methods. That is the challenge before the farm scientists. We need farmer-friendly researches. Fruits of the research should reach the farmers,” the Minister told the scientists.
At a time when climate change posed new challenges to the farm sector, scientists needed to develop new methods. The farm scientists had a huge responsibility to support the farmers and crops to adapt to climatic changes.
The Minister distributed the ISPP awards for outstanding contributions in the field of Plant Physiology to Narendra Kumar Gupta (JJ Chinoy Medal Award); Sneh Lata Singla Pareek (J.C. Bose Gold Medal Award); and Sharad Kumar Dwivedi (R.D. Asana Gold Medal award). Deepu Mathew and Gomathi R. were selected as ISPP Fellows.
R. Chandrababu, Vice Chancellor, KAU, who himself is a plant physiologist, highlighted the importance of using physiological criteria in plant breeding programmes, especially in the context of climate change.
The inaugural function commemorated the works and achievements of the late S. Sheadrinath, founder of the Department of Plant Physiology at Kerala Agricultural University. Senior plant physiologists T.V.R. Nair and Nandini K. were also felicitated.
