SHUATS scientist bags Prof. M.S. Swaminathan Award

Prof. (Dr.) Shailesh Marker, Director of Research, SHUATS has been awarded ‘Prof. M.S. Swaminathan Award’ for the year 2018 by Society of Plant Research, New Delhi for his commendable research in the area of crop improvement. He has developed high yielding varieties of maize, which have stay green character i.e., their cobs can be harvested and the leaves, which are still green can be used as fodder. Particularly his high yielding maize variety SHIATS Makka-3 has been ‘Notified’ by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. He has also developed two varieties of Linseed, which can grow under limited irrigations and can resist many diseases.Dr. Marker has also collected and preserved 400 farmers’ varieties of different crops from different villages of Vindhyan region and helping farmers for registration of their varieties with Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Authority, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, GoI, New Delhi. This has given impetus towards saving these traditional varieties, which have special genes of interest for which their conservation is of utmost importance.In the past also he has been bestowed with ‘Dr. Akhtar Hussain, Vishist Vaigyanic Puraskar’ for his research work.He attributed his success to the continuous support and mentorship of Most Rev. Prof. Rajendra B. Lal, Vice Chancellor, SHUATS.