Australian National UniversityAustralia South Asia Research Centre, Canberra

2005 Narayanan Oration

Canberra, 27 September 2005

Science and Shaping our Agricultural Future

Prof M.S. Swaminathan, FRSChairman, National Commission on Farmers, Government of India

President, Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs

India’s tryst with destiny

“Everything else can wait, but not Agriculture”

Jawaharlal Nehru, August 14-15, 1947

Agriculture is the Greatest Living, Private Sector Industry of India providing Livelihood to over 600

million persons

August 14-15, 1997 :Fiftieth Anniversary of India’s Independence

The most significant achievements of the first 50 years

o Adherance to a democratic system of governance from the village to the national level

o Green Revolution leading to adequate food availability (from begging bowl to bread basket)

Shri. K. R. Narayanan, President of India, August 14-15, 1997

Famine: Triage Classification of Countries

Haiti Can’t- be-savedEgypt Can’t-be-savedThe Gambia Walking WoundedTunisia Should Receive FoodLibya Walking Wounded India Can’t-be-savedPakistan Should Receive Food

- Paul and William Paddock, 1967

Agony and National Shame

40 years later :Revival of this scenario by Lester

Brown

Science and Agricultural Progress1968 – The Beginning of Green Revolution

17 July, 1968

Synergy between Technology and Public Policy

Era of Sharing of Genetic Resources

Fultz(U.S. winter wheat, high yield)

Daruma(Japanese semi-dwarf) X

Fultz-Daruma(semi-dwarf, high yield)

Turkey Red(U.S. winter, high yield)

X

Norin 10(semi-dwarf, winter, high yield)(Dr Gonziro Inazuka in 1935)

Locals(adapted to

U.S. Northwest)X

Gaines(semi-dwarf, winter,

U.S. adpted)X Local Strains

New Wheats(semi-dwarf, high yield, adaptable, rust-resistant, fast-maturing,spring)

Access to Genetic Resources and Biotechnologiesfor Food and Agriculture

Genetic Resources(building blocks)

Biotechnologies(tools)

Commercial Products(market value)

$

Sui generis Systems(Rights)

Benefit-sharing(collective rights)

(e.g. Farmers’ Rights and the Global Plan of Action)

Intellectual Property Rights

(individual rights) % (e.g. Plant Breeder’s Rights)

FAO – International Treaty – Art, 9(also Art. 12 &13)CBD – Art, 8 (j)

WIPOWTO/TRIPS (Art. 27.3.b)

UPOV

Causes and Cures

HungerChronicHiddenTransient

Food SecurityAvailabilityAccessAbsorption

Awareness – Analysis – ActionMSSRF – WFP : Food Insecurity Atlas

“Intensive cultivation of land without conservation of soil fertility and soil structure would lead ultimately to the springing up of deserts. Irrigation without arrangements for drainage would result in soils getting alkaline or saline. Indiscriminate use of pesticides, fungicides and herbicides could cause adverse changes in biological balance as well as lead to an increase in the incidence of cancer and other diseases, through the toxic residues present in the grains or other edible parts. Unscientific tapping of underground water would lead to the rapid exhaustion of this wonderful capital resource left to us through ages of natural farming. The rapid replacement of numerous locally adapted varieties with one or two high yielding strains in large contiguous areas would result in the spread of serious diseases capable of wiping out entire crops, as happened prior to the Irish potato famine of 1845 and the Bengal rice famine of 1942. Therefore, the initiation of exploitative agriculture without a proper understanding of the various consequences of every one of the changes introduced into traditional agriculture and without first building up a proper scientific and training base to sustain it, may only lead us into an era of agricultural disaster in the long run, rather than to an era of agricultural prosperity.”

- M.S. SwaminathanIndian Science Congress, Varanasi, January 4, 1968

Sustainable Food Production

Paradigm Shift : Adding the Dimension ofEnvironmental Sustainability

GreenRevolution

Ever-greenRevolution

CommodityCentered and Laboratory

Research

Integrated Natural Resources Management

Centered and Participatory Research with Farm Families

Ever-green Revolution

“The problem before us is how to feed billions of new mouths over the next several decades and save the rest of life at the same time, without being trapped in a Faustian bargain that threatens freedom from security. The benefits must come from an evergreen revolution. The aim of this new thrust is to lift food production well above the level attained by the green revolution of the 1960s, using technology and regulatory policy more advanced and even safer than now in existence”

- Edward O. Wilson, 2002The Future of life

Nobel Prize in Physiology - 1948

For his discovery of the high efficiency of DDT as a contact

poison against several arthropods

Immediate Impact : Control of Malaria

Paul Hermann Muller (1899-1965)

Environment and Development Early Warning Rachel Carson 1962 : Silent Spring

“Man has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall. He will

end by destroying the earth”

- Albert Schweitzer

Origin of Integrated Pest Management Methodologies

Neem in Agriculture

o Integrated Pest Management

o Integrated Nutrient Supply

Microbial Fertilizers and Pesticides

Pesticide Market

o Western Europe : 26.7%o South/South East Asia : 26.7%o North America : 21.9%

Green Revolution in Rice – Result of the Discovery ofGenes for Dwarfing by Chinese Scientists

The Green Revolution in the Nineteen Sixties in Wheat, Rice and Maize: a message of hope on striking a balance between the rates of growth in population and food production.

China : Home of Hybrid Rice

Integrating Best of Technology

QTL/physical mapping

Functional genomics Mendelian breeding

Microarray Proteomics Cultivars with good combining ability

Gene discovery

Map-based cloning/ cDNA cloning

Genetic Engineering Transgenics

Crossing

Phenotypingand selectionMarker Aided

Selection

Cultivar Selection

Crop Improvement

Variation in Australian Average Wheat Yield (Ten-Year Mean) from 1860 to 2000

Challenges

Biotic and abiotic stressesDefend the Gains

Climate Change

Extend the Gains Dry Farming, Hill Areas, Islands

Diversification and value additionMake New Gains

Quality enhancement

Biotechnology and Organic Agriculture2) Water Quality

OrganicFarming

5) Animal Health

• Vermiculture• Bio-fertilisers• Stem nodulating

green manure crops

• Bioremediation• Genetic Resistance• Biopesticides

1) Soil Health 3) Plant Health

6) Environment

• Vaccines• High quality

feeds and fodder

• Biomonitoring through Bio-indicators

• Higher Carbon Sequestration

4) Post-harvest Technology

• New strains with improved keeping, processing and transport qualities

IFOAM : Genetic Engineering is excluded in organic agriculture

Biodiversity & Molecular Breeding : Mangroves

“There are no useless plants” - Charaka

Gene Deployment for Salinity Tolerance

IGCAR CAMPUSKALPAKKAM

Genetic Shield

Prosopis juliflora has wide adaptation to water stress and drought conditions

Used as source material for drought tolerant genes

Control 36 days of water withdrawal

Preparing for adverse changes in precipitation

Participatory Genotype Development

Combining Genetic Diversity and Genetic Efficiency

Pre-breeding Participatory Breeding

(Farm family – Plant breeder Collaboration)

(Generation of novel genetic combinations for use by grass root plant breeders)

De-mystify Technologies

The Way Ahead

Our ability to achieve a paradigm shift from green to an

ever-green revolution and our ability to face the

challenges of global warming and sea level rise will

depend upon our ability to harmonise organic farming

and the new genetics.

August 14-15, 2007 :60th Anniversary of India’s Independence

Missions 2007

Nutrition and Education for all

o A Hunger-free Indiao Every Village a Knowledge

Centre

Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, President of India

Hunger Free India Action Plan 1 : Delivery of Nutrition Support

Programmes on a Life-cycle Basis

Source: UN Commission on Nutrition

Action Plan 2 : Local Food Security : Community Food Banks

o Low Transaction and transport costso Saving dying Crops and widening the food basket

Community Food, Nutrition and Water Security System

Post Harvest Processing & Value addition

Water BankCommunity Gene Bank

Seed Bank

Cultivation

Community Grain Bank

Participatory Breeding

Field Gene Bank

ConsumptionGenetic Enhancement

Conservation

Action Plan 3 :Building Soil Health : Role of Micronutrients

Soil Analysis Data

o Typical soil analysis results of samples from Mahabubnagar, Nalgonda and Kurnool showed

90% fields were deficient in sulfur

81-94% in zinc and

92-100% were deficient in boron

Source : ICRISAT

Action Plan 3 : Enhancing Small Farm Productivity

Bridging the Yield Gapo Soil Health, with special attention to micronutrientso Water Conservation and Managemento Crop Health Managemento Farmer to Farmer Learningo Pro-active advice on land and water use planningo Small Farmers’ Horticulture Estateso Post-harvest Management

Action Plan 4 :Farming Systems Diversification and Value Addition

8% growth rate in horticulture and animal husbandry will be necessary to achieve 4% growth rate in agriculture as a whole

Livestock and Livelihoods

Over 50 million women and 15 million men are involved in Dairy Enterprises in India

India : Largest Producer of Milk in the World

The Concept of Biovillage

“Biovillage” denotes a village where human development occupies pride of place, “Bios” means living; biovillage is therefore a term for human centred development. The people are the decision makers. Their felt needs are ascertained through participatory rural surveys. The activities taken up are demand and market driven. The beneficiary approach of development based on patronage gives way to an approach which regards rural women and men as producers, innovators and entrepreneurs. The enterprises are identified based on market studies and economic, environmental and social viability.

Biovillage

On-farm

Sustainable Sustainable LivelihoodsLivelihoods

Non-farm

Natural Resources Conservation and

Enhancement

oo LandLandoo WaterWateroo BiodiversityBiodiversityoo Common PropertyCommon Propertyoo ResourcesResourcesoo Human CapitalHuman Capital

oo DiversificationDiversificationoo Value AdditionValue Addition

o Market Driven Enterprises

o SHGs

Action Plan 5 : Non-farm Employment

Credit

Sustainable Self-help Groups

Management Market

Technology

Paradigm Shift from Micro-finance to Livelihood finance

Action Plan 6 : National Food Guarantee Act

(Develop and Introduce on 15 August, 2007)

o Integration of Food for Work and Employment Guarantee Schemes

o Enlarge the concept of Food for Work to cover Food for Health and Food for Millennium Development Goals

o Engender the programme

Jamsetji Tata National Virtual Academy for Rural Prosperity [NVA]

State Level Hub (MSSRF)Data Managers (both connectivity and content) Data

Generators & Providers

Data Users (Rural families)Block level hub

Uplink Satellite

Web based interactive

portal

ICT-enabled knowledge flowLab to Lab, Lab to Land, Land to Lab, Land to Land

Torch bearers of the Rural Knowledge Revolution

Educational InstitutionsCommunity Radio

Internet Radio -SynergyM

SSRF

Cable Radio

Village Knowledge Center

o Trainers’ Training

Capacity Building

Care and Management

Content Creation

Connectivity

o Wired & Wirelesso Space &

Terrestrial

o Demand driven

o Locale specific

o Generic and Dynamic

o ICT-SHGso Fellows of NVA

A VKC centred Bharat Nirman Programme now in implementation will be the most effective method of fostering

rural and agrarian prosperity

Mrs D Usha Rani is a keen health worker, and has organized several medical camps in the village, and brought an awarness about AIDS and de-addiction of alcoholics in the village. She is truly an eye-opener to the villagers. With help from an eye hospital, she has been routinely testing the eyes of the villagers, and restored clear vision to more than 100 people in the village. She is a keen naturopath, and is helping the farmers in offering herbal remedies to the common livestock maladies.Fellow of NVA

Prime Movers of Rural Knowledge Revolution

Mrs Sridevi, daughter of landless labour parents, is actively involved in ICT-based literacy programmes. A good social organizer, Ms Sridevi is successfully running a women’s self help group, and is also providing important market information to the farmers in the village. She has set up a screen-printing unit in the village, and helped in enhancing the income of the members. She is acting as a bridge between the villagers and the education department of the State.

Fellow of VARP

Fellows are elected by a Peer-Review ProcessPrime Movers of Rural Knowledge Revolution

Life saving role of VKC during Tsunami (26 December 2004)- VEERAMPATTINAM

http://www.nemoc.navy.mil/Library/Metoc/Indian+Ocean/Bay+of+Bengal/Models/Swaps/Sig+Wav+Ht+and+Dir+Series/index.html

Tsunami Rehabilitation Programmes

Coastal Bio-shields, Biovillages, Village knowledge Centres are the three planks of MSSRF’s rehabilitation initiatives in the tsunami affected areas in TN and Pondicherry.

Tool Kits have been prepared on each of these to facilitate training and dissemination.

No Time to RelaxShaping our Agricultural Future

Population rich but land hungry countries like China and India have no option except to produce more food grains and other agricultural commodities per units of land and water under conditions of diminishing per capita availability of arable land and irrigation water, and of expanding biotic and abiotic stresses. Such a challenge can be met only by harnessing the best in frontier technologies and blending them with our rich heritage of ecological prudence. Eco-technologies for an Ever-green revolution should be the bottom line of our strategy to shape our agricultural future.

2005 : International Year of Physics

“Concern for man himself and his fate must always form the chief interest of all technical endeavours in order that the creation of our minds shall be a blessing and not a curse”

Albert Einstein & Bertrand Russell, 1955

“Remember your humanity and forget the rest. If you can do so, the way is open to a new paradise; if you cannot, there has before you the risk of universal death”.