M.S. Swaminathan Life History – Biography
DR. M. S. Swaminathan: Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan is India’s most famous agricultural scientist, who is closely related to the revolution in India. In recognition of his work, he has been awarded with the UNESCO Gandhi trophy in 1999, the Magsaysay Award, and therefore the World Food Prize in 1987. He has been included by Time magazine as one of the persons who has influenced the 20th century.
He is the recipient of the many national and international awards including the Padma Vibhushan and therefore the Einstein World Science Award. Dr Swaminathan was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society . In 1999, he became the second Indian to receive the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development. Swaminathan is known as the ‘Father of Indian Green Revolution’ for his contributions to the Green Revolution movement in India.
Agricultural Scientist DR.M.S. Swaminathan
He is now widely known for his advocacy of environmentally sustainable agriculture and sustainable food security. Following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake (tsunami), he had advised India to plant mangrove groves along the shoreline to minimise damage from future tsunamis. He spearheaded a movement called, ‘Mission 2007’: Every village a knowledge centre movement in India.
Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan Born on August 7, 1925, Swaminathan graduated from Cambridge in 1952 with a Ph.D. in genetics. Swaminathan’s contributions to the agricultural renaissance of India has led to his being widely referred to as the scientific leader of the green revolution movement.
He is married to Mina Swaminathan and has three daughtersDoctor Soumya Swaminathan, Kolkata based economist, Madhura Swaminathan and Nitya Rao, who works on Gender issues.
When he first joined the Indian Agriculture Research Institute, food production in India wasn’t sufficient to satisfy its requirements and this was a serious challenge for him. After thorough research to solve the problem of low yield in wheat, Dr. M.S. Swaminathan zeroed on a newly developed Mexican dwarf variety, which was found to be suitable for cultivation in India. Wheat production increased dramatically thereafter, and doubled within 10 years.
Dr. M.S. Swaminathan developed high-yielding strains of wheat and rice and accomplished crosses in potato and jute species. He formulated various schemes and projects to supply the advantage of research to the farmer within the field. He also introduced modern methods and techniques to boost agricultural production.
About Life DR.M.S. Swaminathan
Swaminathan was the chairman of the UN Science Advisory Committee found out in 1980 to require the follow-up action on the Vienna Plan of Action. Dr. M.S. Swaminathan has also served as an independent chairman of the FAO Council and president of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. He is the current president of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs (the first person from a third world country to be elected the president). He is also on the Board of Trustees of Alexandria Bibliotheca – the only non-White and non-Arab on the board.
Dr. M.S. Swaminathan may be a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, the US National Academy of Sciences, the Russian Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences and therefore the Italian Academy of Sciences. He currently holds the UNESCO Chair in Ecotechnology at the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai (Madras), India. He is the chairman of the National Commission on Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Security of India.
Dr. Swaminathan has been described by the United Nations Environment Programame as “the Father of Economic Ecology” and by Javier Pérez de Cuellar, former Secretary General of the United Nations , as “a living legend who will enter the annals of history as a world scientist of rare distinction”.
Dr. Swaminathan has been conferred upon with the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for 2012. He was presented the award, which carries 5,00,000 and a citation, on October 31, 2013 by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi.
