Hon'ble Upa Rashtrapati Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu-ji,
Prof. M.S. Swaminathan, Founder, MS Swaminathan Foundation,
Dr. Lyonpo Kinzang Dorji, Hon'ble former Prime Minister of Bhutan,
Shri Suresh Prabhu, Hon'ble Minister of Commerce & Industry,
Dr. H.K. Bhanwala, Chairman, NABARD,
Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General, Indian Council for Agricultural Research,
Dr. M.J. Khan, Chairman, Indian Council of Food & Agriculture,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It gives me great joy to address you all this evening at the function to present the first World Agriculture Prize, organized by Indian Council of Food and Agriculture.
The august presence of the Hon'ble Vice President of India in this function, indicates the significance of this Award for exceptional contribution to Agriculture, which is the most important sector in any economy.As a person hailing from the farming community in rural Tamil Nadu, I am happy to share the dais with our Hon’ble Vice President in the first World Agriculture Prize awarding ceremony.
Let me at the outset, congratulate Dr. M.S. Swaminathan,the World Agriculture Prize Laureate of this year. We all know him as the Father of the Indian Green Revolution, which had revitalized the agricultural production in our country. The contribution of the Green Revolution to India's food security is also globally recognized.
As the Governor of Kerala, I must also mention about his ancestral home in Alappuzha district of Kerala and about his past as an alumnus of the University of Kerala. His roots lie in the village of Mancombu, which forms part of Kuttanad, considered to be the rice bowl of Kerala. I am certain that such a background would have helped in directing his academic pursuits and interest towards agricultural research. We are also aware of how his identification of the potential value of the Mexican Dwarf wheat variety enabled the Green Revolution in Asia.
Undoubtedly, the conferment of this Award would also encourage the promoters of innovative agricultural practices all over the world to use their knowledge to ensure global food security.
Though we are in the technology-driven 21st century, we are still plagued by issues like malnutrition and poverty, which can be addressed only by strengthening our food security. Needless to say, the key to food security lies in the strengthening of the primary sector of agriculture.
In our march towards becoming a true knowledge society, we have been attaching more importance to industries and the services sector by not giving agriculture its due. It is also well known that the share of aid to agricultural activity in most of the nations has not increased considerably. Yet, all over the world, we see exceptional individuals committed to eradicating hunger and malnutrition by developing agriculture and ensuring farmers' welfare through ideas and practices. I feel that the World Agriculture Prize instituted by Indian Council of Food and Agriculture is an effort to recognize such extraordinary individuals. This gesture of the Council certainly deserves our appreciation.
I would also request the organizations like Indian Council of Food and Agriculture to seriously consider the encouragement of interaction between researchers and farmers who utilize traditional knowledge for better yield. Our agricultural sector will certainly benefit from a more logical synthesis of the traditional and the modern practices in farming.
I once again congratulate Dr. M.S. Swaminathan for the honor that he has received today and wish him success in his future endeavors.
It is also vital to encourage farmers whose practices help to preserve our rich biodiversity. We also cannot ignore our women farmers who are our traditional custodian of seeds. Through programmes which empower our women farmers, we will be ensuring the sustainable use and management of our agri-resources.
I compliment the organizers for conducting this function in a befitting manner.
Thank You
Jai Hind
