ICAR, ICRISAT signed collaborative agreement for crop improvement

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) on 15 March 2017 signed a collaborative agreement for crop improvement.

The agreement was signed by Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) and Director General (ICAR) and  Dr David Bergvinson, Director General, ICRISAT in New Delhi.

Highlights of the Agreement

• The agreement, which is called as the ICAR-ICRISAT collaborative work plan for the years 2016-18, facilitates the transfer of agricultural technologies between the two institutes.

• Climate smart crops, smart food and digitalization of breeding database are some of the core areas of research covered under the agreement.

• The partnership includes funding to research grain legumes and dryland cereals and support for the smart food initiative to deliver sustainable and nutritionally rich products to consumers.

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• On the crop improvement front, the agreement will also facilitate research activities on transgenic pigeonpea and chickpea for insect resistance.

• Other areas of focus over the next three years include the integration of  systems modelling tools to upscale climate resilient agriculture, development of genetic and genomic resources of finger millet and enhancement of genetic gains for priority traits.

About Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

• The ICAR is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE).

• It was established as the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research on 16 July 1929 as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 by the British Government.

• The Council is the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture, including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country.

• With 101 Institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country, ICAR is one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world.

• Its headquarters is located in New Delhi.

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About International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)

• It is an international organisation, which conducts agricultural research for rural development.

• It is headquartered at Patancheru in Hyderabad, Telangana.

• It was established in 1972 by a consortium of organisations convened by the Ford and the Rockefeller foundations and its charter was signed by the FAO and the UNDP.