Swaminathan- The Green Revolutionist

By: Samar Bhatia

Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan, an Indian agronomic, agricultural scientist, expert in plant genetics, administrator, and humanitarian, was born on August 7, 1925. Swaminathan was a pioneer of the green revolution on a worldwide scale. His initiative and contribution to the advancement of high-yielding wheat and rice varieties have been dubbed the primary architect of the green revolution in India.

Swaminathan and Norman Borlaug’s joint scientific efforts, supported by public policies, led a broad movement with farmers and other scientists to prevent famine-like circumstances in India and Pakistan in the 1960s. The first World Food Prize, regarded as the Nobel Prize or the greatest honours, was given to him in 1987.

With respect to potato, wheat, and rice, Swaminathan made basic research contributions in the fields of cytogenetics, ionising radiation, and radio sensitivity. He served as the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s President as well as the Pugwash Conference’s President (IUCN). He was on TIME magazine’s list of the “20 Most Influential Asian People of the 20th Century” in 1999 alongside Eiji Toyoda, the Dalai Lama, and Mao Zedong as one of three Indians, along with Gandhi and Tagore.

Swaminathan has won various honours and prizes, such as the Albert Einstein World Science Award, the Ramon Magsaysay Award, and the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award. Between 2002 to 2005, he co-chaired the United Nations Millennium Project on Hunger. From 2002 to 2007, he served as the director of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs. Dr. Swaminathan was praised by Bruce Alberts, president of the American National Academy of Sciences, in 2005.

Evergreen Revolution is a term introduced by Swaminathan to address the ongoing rise in sustainable production that humanity needs. He has also participated in programmes to close the digital divide and inform policymakers about studies in the areas of hunger and nutrition.