Neelamraju Ganga Prasada Rao (5 September 1927 – 27 July 2016) was an Indian geneticist and plant breeder, known for his efforts in developing hybrid varieties of

sorghum ''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...

, which earned him the moniker, the Father of Hybrid Sorghum. He was the vice chancellor of Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Agricultural University and chaired the Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board of the

Indian Council of Agricultural Research The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous body responsible for co-ordinating agricultural education and research in India. It reports to the Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Ministry of Agriculture. Th ...

. He was a recipient of several national honors including

Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award The Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award was created in 1956 by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in 1956 to recognize Indian researchers in the agricultural field. The award is named after Indian Independence activist Rafi Ahmed Kidwai. Award ...

and the VASVIK Industrial Research Award. The

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...

, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology Shanti or Shanthi may refer to: In Sanskrit * Inner peace, a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress * Kshanti, one of the paramitas of B ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 1966, for his contributions to biological sciences.

Biography

N. G. Prasada Rao was born on 5 September 1927 in Korisapadu,

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

and he graduated in agriculture (BSc) with second rank from Agricultural College, Bapatla, then affiliated to

Andhra University Andhra University is a public university located in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. It was established in 1926. It is graded as an A++ institution by NAAC receiving a score of 3.74 on a scale of 4. History King Vikram Deo Verma, the Mah ...

(presently affiliated to Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University). After completing his master's degree at the

Indian Agricultural Research Institute The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), commonly known as the Pusa Institute, is India's national institute for agricultural research, education and extension. The name Pusa Institute is derived from the fact that the institute was ...

with a first rank, he secured his PhD from

Bihar University Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar Bihar University, (abbreviated as BRABU) also known as B.R. Ambedkar Bihar University, is a state university located in Muzaffarpur. Established in 1960, the university has 37 constituent colleges and offers a range of ...

in 1958 after which Chandrasekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology awarded him the degree of Doctor of Science (DSc). His career started as a lecturer at

Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate university, collegiate Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, issued a ''firman'' calling f ...

but later joined the Indian Agricultural Research Institute as a plant breeder for sorghum where he served for a number of years as a coordinator of ''All India Sorghum Improvement Project'', head of IARI Hyderabad station and as a Professor of Eminence. During his tenure at IARI, he also served as a faculty member at the College of Agriculture, Hyderabad and at IARI campus in New Delhi. Later he also worked as a Sorghum breeder with

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) is an international organisation which conducts agricultural research for rural development, headquartered in Patancheru, Hyderabad, Telangana, India, with several ...

in West Africa before serving as the vice chancellor of Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Agricultural University, and was associated with the

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, , translates ...

of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

as a consultant. Rao was known to have done extensive researches in breeding hybrid varieties of sorghum and his efforts were reported to have assisted in the development of three new varieties, CSH-1, CSH-2 and CSH-9, which returned high yield levels. It also helped the

kharif Kharif crops, also known as monsoon crops or autumn crops, are domesticated plants that are cultivated and harvested in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh during the Indian subcontinent's monsoon season, which lasts from June to November depending ...

cultivation in the arid areas of India and West Africa, in making sorghum a popular crop, comparable to rice and wheat and in the development of hybrid seed industry in India. He proposed new cropping techniques and his efforts also contributed to the development of other crops such as cotton, red gram and castor. His researches have been documented in over 200 papers published by him in peer reviewed journals. He was associated with Indian Society of Genetics and Plant Breeding and the Society for Millets Improvement and presided over both the societies. Rao took ill in 2016 and after a short period of illness, died on 27 July 2016, at the age of 88, in Hyderabad.

Awards and honors

The

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three b ...

elected Rao as their fellow in 1979, followed by the

National Academy of Sciences, India The National Academy of Sciences, India, also known as NASI, was established in 1930 and is the oldest science academy of India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the founder president. Fellows * Suddhasatwa Bas ...

, in 1988. He was also an elected fellow of the

National Academy of Agricultural Sciences The National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) is a Government of India funded agency, established in 1990, is a research platform in the fields of crop husbandry, animal husbandry, fisheries and agro-forestry. It acts as a research base for ...

and the Andhra Pradesh Academy of Sciences. He received the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize Shanti or Shanthi may refer to: In Sanskrit * Inner peace, a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress * Kshanti, one of the paramitas of B ...

, one of the highest Indian science awards, from the

in 1966, the same year as he received the C. Subramaniam Gold Medal. He received the

of the

in 1974 and the VASVIK Industrial Research Award in 1979. The Government of Andhra Pradesh honored him with two awards, the Atma Gaurav Award in 2003, and the Distinguished Agricultural Scientist Award in 2008. Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University has instituted an annual award in his honor, for recognizing academic excellence at graduate level courses.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rao, Neelamraju Ganga Prasada Recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Biological Science 1927 births 2016 deaths People from Prakasam district Telugu people Andhra University alumni Academic staff of Osmania University Food and Agriculture Organization officials Indian geneticists Plant breeding Indian agriculturalists Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy Fellows of the National Academy of Sciences, India Fellows of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences Heads of universities and colleges in India Scientists from Andhra Pradesh 20th-century Indian botanists Indian officials of the United Nations

Biography

Awards and honors

See also

References