GREEN REVOLUTION
(A Glory Regained )
India, A land of farms and farmers ushered into an era of independence and joy in 1947, But the nation faced many challenges of which agriculture and food were the foremost sectors of concern. Prime Minister Shri Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru accorded top priority to agriculture by asserting;
" Anything else can wait,
but not agriculture"
( Jawaharlal Nehru )
Despite best efforts, the population growth outpaced agricultural developments. Soon country became a begging bowl with a shameful ship-to-mouth existence. Food supplies to the general public depended heavily on the import of wheat from America under the PL 480 program and other countries. It was a great financial burden to sustain a struggling economy. The prestige and glory of India were at stake. Global scholars and analysts predicted mass starvation in India. Paul Anne Ehrlich, A very famous population expert said that "Indians have no future unless a thermonuclear bomb kills them" and another group of experts said, " Indians will die like a sheep going in a slaughterhouse". Prime Minister Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri appealed to the nation to miss a meal in a week. People were advised to wider food baskets by including tubers and millets in their daily diet. Shastri Ji accorded agriculture a status equal to that of the defense by coining and popularizing the famous slogan.
" Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan "
In 1965, a serious drought and the Indo-Pak war further worsened the situation. The import of food grains reached a record peak of 10 million tonnes in 1966. Then Prime Minister Shrimati Indira Gandhi reposed faith and confidence, saying;
"It's a challenge which has to be faced and met and I don't think it is a desperate situation by any means but it does need a tremendous unity in the country and a very determined effort to solve these various problems and of course, you know that the situation has been complicated by the great drought we had this year, that was one of the reasons for the food shortage"
Meanwhile, in Mexico, a visionary scientist and a great human being, Dr. Norman Borlaug was striving to fight hunger through science and technology. He made a breakthrough in enhancing the yield of wheat by developing dwarf and rust-resistant varieties. In India, a young dynamic, and committed MS Swaminathan had a strong desire and dream to make India a self-reliant and hunger-free country. He joined the botany division of the prestigious Indian Agriculture Research, New Delhi in 1954 believing that Semi-dwarf varieties of wheat can do wonders in Indian conditions. He recalled his acquaintance with Dr. Borlaug and raised his hands for help in India. Dr. Borlaug visited India in March 1963 and he along with Dr. Swaminathan traveled all over the wheat belt in North India to study conditions for semi-dwarf varieties of wheat. Dr. Borlaug said;
" If I have anything to contribute to this world when I know that our scientific facts are right and we have materials that can be brought together in a meaningful production program. I am going to play that card and play it hard such was done in Pakistan, and it is being done in India, Turkey, and Morocco and it will soon be done in many other countries in the near and middle east".
Multi-location trials of Mexican semi-dwarf wheat varieties received from Dr. Borlaug were conducted under the leadership of Dr. Swaminasthan1963-1964. Dr. Swaminathan said;
"When I analyzed all the data received from the different stations, all of them uniformly showed that the new dwarf varieties are capable of yielding 3 to 4 times more than the earlier tall varieties".
More than 1000 national demonstrations were conducted in the fields of small farmers who successfully harvested 4-5 tons per hectare in contrast to earlier one tonne per hectare. This was a quantum jump never even imagined earlier. The clamor for new yielding seeds grew rapidly across North Indian Wheatbelt, Hence an innovative two-pronged strategy was devised for rapid seed multiplication and distribution. First, the Jaunty village of Delhi state was developed as a seed village for the production of seeds of new varieties, and Second, The import of bulk quantities from Mexico. Prime minister Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri and Shrimati Indira Gandhi Long with the minister of food and agriculture Shri C. Subramaniam approved the import of seeds of Lerma Rojo ( 200 tonnes in 1965) and Sonora 64 (18000 tonnes in 1966). This one political decision opened a gateway for the wide-scale adoption of dwarf varieties. Dr. Borlaug regularly visited India and interacted with scientists and farmers alike his involvement at the field level was a great motivation for farmers. Agriculture Minister Shri Jagjivan Ram played a catalytic role in spreading the new varieties by approving uniform MSP for all Wheat varieties. Farmers adopted new varieties with open hands and hearts.
In 1968 the nation reaped a bumper harvest of 17 million tonnes of wheat that was just 11 million tonnes in 1966. This was the biggest leap in wheat production ever recorded in the world. The government of India released a special stamp to highlight the wheat revolution. Dr. William S. Gaud coined the term 'Green Revolution' to recognize the spectacular achievement. Since then wheat production has never looked back. Science and Technology acted as the prime mover to sustain and accelerate the momentum. Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Bajpayee aptly rephrased the popular slogan as;
" Jai Jawan
Jai Kisan
Jai Vigyan"
Later the production of wheat crossed 95 million tonnes which is another milestone achievement. The Indian Agricultural Research Institute played a key role in asserting the green revolution in this country. The seeds of high-yielding varieties of wheat were brought from CIMMYT, They were first tested on the campus of this university and subsequently spread to other parts of the country. Recognizing the leadership of Dr. Swaminathan, the country loves to call him the 'Father of the Green Revolution.'The government of India honored him with all three Padma Awards. He also received global acclaim and recognition including the prestigious World Food Prize. Dr. Borlaug was equally honored by Padma Vibushan, and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research erected his statue in NAAS(National Academy of Agricultural Sciences) in his formed remembrance. He was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 in recognition of his fight against global hunger. Shri C. Subramanium was also awarded by Bharat Ratan.
The Green Revolution laid a solid foundation of self-sufficiency which India attained during the 1990s and now India moved further as a surplus food grain nation. The country has more than 50 million tonnes of food grains in buffer stock and an all-time high annual of 20 million tonnes.
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