View source for M. S. Swaminathan

{{Short description|Indian agronomist (1925–2023)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| birth_name          = Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan
| caption             = Swaminathan in 2013
| image               = Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan - Kolkata 2013-01-07 2674.JPG
| office              = [[Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha]]
| constituency        = [[List of nominated members of the Rajya Sabha|Nominated]]
| term_start          = 2007
| term_end            = 2013
| birth_date          = {{Birth date|1925|08|07|df=yes}}
| office1             = [[Secretary to the Government of India|Principal Secretary]] in the [[Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare|Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation]]
| term_start2         = 1979
| term_end2           = 1980
| birth_place         = [[Kumbakonam]], [[Tanjore District, Madras Presidency]], British&nbsp;India {{awrap|(present-day [[Thanjavur district|Thanjavur]], Tamil&nbsp;Nadu, India)}}
| death_date          = {{Death date and age|2023|09|28|1925|08|07|df=yes}}
| death_place         = [[Chennai]], Tamil&nbsp;Nadu, India
| nationality         = Indian
| education           = {{Indented plainlist|
* [[University of Kerala]] ([[BSc]])
* [[University of Madras]] ([[MSc]])
* [[University of Cambridge]] ([[PhD]])
}}
| module              = {{Infobox scientist
| embed            = yes
| workplaces       = {{Indented plainlist|
* Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI; as teacher, researcher and research administrator, 1954–1972)
* [[Indian Council of Agricultural Research]] (ICAR; as Director General, 1972–1980)
* [[International Rice Research Institute]] (IRRI; as Director General, 1982–1988)
}}
| awards           = {{plainlist|
* [[Padma Shri]] (1967)
* [[Ramon Magsaysay Award]] (1971)
* [[Padma Bhushan]] (1972)
* [[World Food Prize]] (1987)
* [[Padma Vibhushan]] (1989)
* [[Bharat Ratna]] (2024)
}}
| spouse           = {{marriage|[[Mina Swaminathan]]|1955|2022|end=died}}
| children         = 3, including [[Soumya Swaminathan|Soumya]]
| fields           = {{cslist|[[Botany]]|[[Plant geneticist|plant genetics]]|[[genetics]]|[[cytogenetics]]|[[ecological economics]]|[[plant breeding]]|[[ecotechnology]]}}
| thesis_title     = Species Differentiation, and the Nature of Polyploidy in certain species of the genus Solanum–section Tuberarium
| thesis_year      = 1952
| doctoral_advisor = H. W. Howard
}}
}}
'''Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan''' (7 August 1925 – 28 September 2023) was an Indian [[geneticist|geneticist and plant breeder]], administrator and [[humanitarian]].<ref name=":5" /> Swaminathan was a global leader of the [[Green Revolution|green revolution]].<ref name=":4">{{cite journal |last1=Cabral |first1=Lídia |last2=Pandey |first2=Poonam |last3=Xu |first3=Xiuli |title=Epic narratives of the Green Revolution in Brazil, China, and India |journal=Agriculture and Human Values |date=3 July 2021 |volume=39 |pages=249–267 |doi=10.1007/s10460-021-10241-x |s2cid=237804269|doi-access=free |url=https://eprints.iisc.ac.in/73826/1/agr_hum_val_39-1_249-267_2022.pdf }}</ref> He has been called the main architect{{Efn|A number of people have been recognized for their efforts during India's Green Revolution. [[Chidambaram Subramaniam]], the food and agriculture minister at the time, a [[Bharat Ratna]], has been called the '''Political Father of the Green Revolution'''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dugger |first=Celia W. |date=10 November 2000 |title=Chidambaram Subramaniam, India's 'Green' Rebel, 90, Dies |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/11/10/world/chidambaram-subramaniam-india-s-green-rebel-90-dies.html |access-date=3 December 2021 |issn=0362-4331 |quote=Chidambaram Subramaniam, the political architect of the ''green revolution'' in India...}}</ref> [[Dilbagh Singh Athwal]] is called the '''Father of Green Revolution'''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2017 |title='Father of Wheat Revolution' DS Athwal passes away |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/father-of-wheat-revolution-ds-athwal-passes-away/story-ZrvUSsethoakAa3DZl9V1J.html |access-date=3 December 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref>}} of the [[green revolution in India]] for his leadership and role in introducing and further developing [[high-yielding varieties]] of wheat and rice.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Spaeth |first=Anthony |date=23-30 August 1999 |title=Asians of the Century: A Tale of Titans. M.S. Swaminathan. |volume=154 |work=TIME. [[Time 100]] |issue=7/8 |url=http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990823/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010125001700/http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990823/index.html |archive-date=25 January 2001}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=1971 |title=Swaminathan, Moncompu Sambasivan |url=https://www.rmaward.asia/awardee/swaminathan-moncompu-sambasivan |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125135625/https://www.rmaward.asia/awardee/swaminathan-moncompu-sambasivan |archive-date=25 November 2021 |access-date=25 November 2021 |website=[[Ramon Magsaysay Award]] |quote=A cytogeneticist from India who made major advances in breeding sturdier, more productive and better quality plant types}}</ref> 

Swaminathan's collaborative scientific efforts with [[Norman Borlaug]], spearheading a mass movement with farmers and other scientists and backed by public policies, saved India and Pakistan from certain famine-like conditions in the 1960s.{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=418-420}}<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Damodaran |first=Harish |date=13 August 2015 |title=A living legend: Swaminathan@90 |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/a-living-legend-swaminathan90/ |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=The Indian Express}}</ref> His leadership as director general of the [[International Rice Research Institute]] (IRRI) in the Philippines was instrumental in his being awarded the first [[World Food Prize]] in 1987, recognized as one of the highest honours in the field of agriculture.{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=417-418}} The [[United Nations Environment Programme]] has called him "the Father of Economic Ecology".<ref name=":22" />
He was recently conferred the [[Bharat Ratna]], the highest civilian award of the Republic of India, in 2024.

Swaminathan contributed [[basic research]] related to potato, wheat, and rice, in areas such as [[cytogenetics]], [[ionizing radiation]], and [[radiosensitivity]].{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2041-2042|2014}} He was a president of the [[Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs|Pugwash Conferences]] and the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=2}}{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|2014|p=2045}} In 1999, he was one of three Indians, along with [[Gandhi]] and [[Tagore]], on ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''{{'s}} list of the 20 most influential Asian people of the 20th century.<ref name=":0" /> Swaminathan received numerous awards and honours, including the [[List of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize recipients|Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award]], the [[Ramon Magsaysay Award]], and the [[Albert Einstein World Award of Science|Albert Einstein World Science Award]].<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |last=Worth |first=Brett |title=M.S. Swaminathan (Honorary) |url=https://thp.org/board/m-s-swaminathan/ |access-date=25 November 2021 |website=The Hunger Project |language=en |archive-date=10 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610011604/https://thp.org/board/m-s-swaminathan/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Swaminathan chaired the [[National Commission on Farmers]] in 2004, which recommended far-reaching ways to improve [[India's farming system]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mishra |first=Dheeraj |date=27 December 2020 |title=Reality Belies Modi Govt Claims of Implementing Swaminathan Commission's Report |url=https://thewire.in/government/reality-belies-modi-government-implementing-swaminathan-commission-recommendations |access-date=26 November 2021 |website=The Wire}}</ref> He was the founder of an [[MS Swaminathan Research Foundation|eponymous research foundation]].<ref name=":0" /> He coined the term "[[Evergreen Revolution]]" in 1990 to describe his vision of "productivity in perpetuity without associated ecological harm".<ref name=":4" />{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=426|ps=...'Evergreen Revolution' to mean increasing agricultural productivity in perpetuity without associated ecological harm...}} He was [[List of nominated members of the Rajya Sabha|nominated to the Parliament of India]] for one term between 2007 and 2013.<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |title=M.S. Swaminathan |url=https://prsindia.org/mptrack/rajya-sabha/msswaminathan |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=PRS Legislative Research (PRSIndia)}}</ref> During his tenure he put forward a bill for the recognition of [[women farmers in India]].<ref name=":11">{{Cite web |last=Bedi |first=Bani |date=30 July 2018 |title=The Centre Is Barely Serious About Recognising Women as Farmers |url=https://thewire.in/women/women-farmers-agriculture-rights |access-date=25 November 2021 |website=The Wire}}</ref>

== Life ==

=== Early life and education ===
Swaminathan was born in a [[Tamil Brahmin|Tamil Brahmin]] family in [[Kumbakonam]], Madras Presidency, on 7 August 1925.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=14}} He was the second son of [[General Surgeon|general surgeon]] M. K. Sambasivan and Parvati Thangammal Sambasivan. At age 11, after his father's death, Swaminathan was looked after by his father's brother. Swaminathan’s parents were second-generation descendants of migrants from [[Thanjavur]], and were natives of [[Monkombu|Mankombu]], [[Alappuzha]], [[Kerala]]. This was the reason he was carrying Mankombu in his name.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://english.mathrubhumi.com/columns/view-from-my-window/swaminathan-the-greatest-keralite-column-by-m-g-radhakrishnan-1.8950845 | title=Swaminathan: The greatest Keralite? | date=October 2023 }}</ref>

Swaminathan was educated at a local high school and later at the Catholic Little Flower High School in Kumbakonam,{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=17}} from which he matriculated at age 15.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=22}} From childhood, he interacted with farming and farmers; his extended family grew rice, mangoes, and coconut, and later expanded into other areas such as coffee.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=9, 11, 12, 13}} He saw the impact that fluctuations in the price of crops had on his family, including the devastation that weather and pests could cause to crops as well as incomes.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=13}}

His parents wanted him to study medicine. With that in mind, he started off his higher education with zoology.{{Sfn|Yadugiri|2011|p=996}} But when he witnessed the impacts of the [[Bengal famine of 1943]] during the [[World War II|Second World War]] and shortages of rice throughout the sub-continent, he decided to devote his life to ensuring India had enough food.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=24}} Despite his family background, and belonging to an era where medicine and engineering were considered much more prestigious, he chose agriculture.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=25-26}}

He went on to finish his undergraduate degree in [[zoology]] at Maharaja's College in [[Trivandrum]], Kerala (now known as [[University College Thiruvananthapuram|University College, Thiruvananthapuram]] at the [[University of Kerala]]).{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=22}} He then studied at [[University of Madras]] (Madras Agricultural College, now the [[Tamil Nadu Agricultural University]]) from 1940 to 1944 and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in [[agricultural science|Agricultural Science]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=25}} During this time he was also taught by [[Cotah Ramaswami]], a professor of agronomy.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=26}}

In 1947 he moved to the [[Indian Agricultural Research Institute]] (IARI) in New Delhi to study [[genetics]] and [[plant breeding]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=28}} He obtained a post-graduate degree with high distinction in [[cytogenetics]] in 1949. His research focused on the genus ''[[Solanum]]'', with specific attention to the potato.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=28-29}} Social pressures resulted in him competing in the examinations for civil services, through which he was selected to the [[Indian Police Service]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=30-31}} At the same time, an opportunity for him arose in the agriculture field in the form of a UNESCO fellowship in genetics in the Netherlands. He chose genetics.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=30-31}}

=== Netherlands and Europe ===
Swaminathan was a UNESCO fellow at the [[Wageningen University|Wageningen Agricultural University]]'s Institute of Genetics in the Netherlands for eight months.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=31}} The demand for potatoes during the Second World War resulted in deviations in age-old crop rotations. This caused [[golden nematode]] infestations in certain areas such as reclaimed agricultural lands. Swaminathan worked on adapting genes to provide resilience against such parasites, as well as cold weather. To this effect, the research succeeded.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=33-34}} Ideologically the university influenced his later scientific pursuits in India with respect to food production.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=33}} During this time he also made a visit to the [[Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research]] in war-torn Germany; this would later influence him deeply as during his next visit, a decade later, he saw that the Germans had transformed Germany, both infrastructurally and energetically.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=34-35}}

=== United Kingdom ===
In 1950, he moved to study at the Plant Breeding Institute of the [[University of Cambridge]] School of Agriculture.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=35}} He earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1952 for his thesis "Species Differentiation, and the Nature of [[Polyploidy]] in certain species of the genus ''Solanum'' – section Tuberarium".{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=35}} The following December he stayed for a week with [[Frank Lugard Brayne|F.L. Brayne]], a former [[Indian Civil Service]] officer, whose experiences with rural India influenced Swaminathan in his later years.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=36-37}}

=== United States of America ===
Swaminathan then spent 15 months in the United States.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=38}} He accepted a post-doctoral research associateship at the [[University of Wisconsin–Madison|University of Wisconsin]]'s Laboratory of Genetics to help set up a [[USDA]] potato research station.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=38}} The laboratory at the time had Nobel laureate [[Joshua Lederberg]] on its faculty.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=39}} His associateship ended in December 1953. Swaminathan turned down a faculty position in order to continue to make a difference back home in India.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=40}}

=== India ===
Swaminathan returned to India in early 1954. There were no jobs in his specialisation and it was only three months later that he received an opportunity through a former professor to work temporarily as an assistant botanist at [[Central Rice Research Institute]] in Cuttack.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=41-42}} At Cuttack, he was under an indica-japonica rice hybridisation program started by [[Krishnaswami Ramiah]]. This stint would go on to influence his future work with wheat.{{Sfn|Yadugiri|2011|p=997}} Half a year later he joined [[Indian Agricultural Research Institute]] (IARI) in New Delhi in October 1954 as an assistant cytogeneticist.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=41-42}} Swaminathan was critical of India importing food grains when seventy percent of India was dependent on agriculture. Further drought and famine-like situations were developing in the country.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=42-43}}

[[File:Stamp of India - 1968 - Colnect 239052 - Wheat Revolution.jpeg|thumb|An [[List of postage stamps of India|Indian postage stamp]] released on 17 July 1968 commemorated the "Wheat Revolution" with wheat stalks, the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), and a bar graph of the increase in wheat production.<ref>{{Cite news |date=12 July 1968 |title=Prime Minister to Release Stamp on "Wheat Revolution". |work=Press Information Bureau, Government of India |url=https://archive.pib.gov.in/archive/ArchiveSecondPhase/COMMUNICATION/1968-JAN-DEC-P-T-BOARD/COM-1968-07-12_097.pdf |access-date=2 December 2021}}</ref>]]
Swaminathan and [[Norman Borlaug]] collaborated, with Borlaug touring India and sending supplies for a range of Mexican dwarf varieties of wheat, which were to be bred with Japanese varieties.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=43-44}} Initial testing in an experimental plot showed good results. The crop was high-yield, good quality, and disease free.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=44}} There was hesitation by farmers to adopt the new variety whose high yields were unnerving.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=44}} In 1964, following repeated requests by Swaminathan to demonstrate the new variety, he was given funding to plant small demonstration plots. A total of 150 demonstration plots on 1 hectare were planted.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=44}} The results were promising and the anxieties of the farmers were reduced.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=44}} More modifications were made to the grain in the laboratory to better suit Indian conditions.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=44-45}} The new wheat varieties were sown and in 1968 production went to 17 million tonnes, 5 million tonnes more than the last harvest.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=45}}

Just before receiving his Nobel Prize in 1970, [[Norman Borlaug]] wrote to Swaminathan:{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=47}}

{{Blockquote|text=The Green Revolution has been a team effort and much of the credit for its spectacular development must go to the Indian officials, organizations, scientists, and farmers. However, to you, Dr. Swaminathan, a great deal of the credit must go for first recognizing the potential value of the Mexican dwarfs. Had this not occurred, it is quite possible that there would not have been a Green Revolution in Asia.}}

Notable contributions were made by Indian agronomists and geneticists such as [[Gurdev Khush]] and [[Dilbagh Singh Athwal]].<ref name=":8" /> The Government of India declared India self-sufficient in food production in 1971.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=47}} India and Swaminathan could now deal with other serious issues of access to food, hunger, and nutrition.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=47}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Akancha |date=18 October 2021 |title=Global Hunger Index: The labyrinth of India's eternal tryst with hunger and malnutrition |url=https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/health/global-hunger-index-the-labyrinth-of-india-s-eternal-tryst-with-hunger-and-malnutrition-79730 |access-date=22 November 2021 |website=Down to Earth}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Singh |first=Joginder |date=3 October 2016 |title=India is self-sufficient, but millions go hungry |url=https://www.dailypioneer.com/2016/columnists/india-is-self-sufficient-but-millions-go-hungry.html |access-date=10 November 2021 |website=The Pioneer}}</ref> He was with IARI between 1954 and 1972.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Polunin |first=Nicholas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iWb7AQAAQBAJ |title=World Who Is Who and Does What in Environment and Conservation |date=5 November 2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-05938-6 |pages=320–321}}</ref>

=== Administrator and educator ===
In 1972, Swaminathan was appointed as the director-general of the [[Indian Council of Agricultural Research]] (ICAR) and a [[secretary to the Government of India]].{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=8}} In 1979, in a rare move for a scientist, he was made a [[Principal secretary (India)|principal secretary]], a senior position in the Government of India.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=52}} The next year he was shifted to the [[Planning Commission (India)|Planning Commission]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=53}} As director-general of ICAR, he pushed for technical literacy, setting up centres all over India for this.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=52}} Droughts during this period led him to form groups to watch weather and crop patterns, with the ultimate aim of protecting the poor from malnutrition.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=52-53}} His shift to the Planning Commission for two years resulted in the introduction of women and environment with respect to development in [[India's Five Year Plans|India's five year plans]] for the first time.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=53}}{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=8}}

In 1982, he was made the first Asian director general of the [[International Rice Research Institute]] (IRRI) in the Philippines.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=53}} He was there until 1988.<ref name=":5" /> One of the contributions he made during his tenure here was conducting an international conference "Women in Rice Farming Systems".{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=54}} For this, the United States–based [[Association for Women's Rights in Development|Association for Women in Development]] gave Swaminathan their first award for "outstanding contributions to the integration of women in development".{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=55}} As director general, he spread awareness among rice-growing families of making the value of each part of the rice crop.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=55}} His leadership at IRRI was instrumental in the first [[World Food Prize]] being awarded to him.{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=417-418}} In 1984 he became the president and vice-president of the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature]] and [[World Wildlife Fund]] respectively.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=75}}

In 1987 he was awarded the first [[World Food Prize]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=56}} The prize money was used to set up the [[MS Swaminathan Research Foundation|M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=57}} Accepting the award, Swaminathan spoke of the growing hunger despite the increase in food production. He spoke of the fear of sharing "power and resources", and that the goal of a world without hunger remains unfinished.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=56-57}} In their commendation letters, [[Javier Pérez de Cuéllar]], [[Frank Press]], President [[Ronald Reagan]], and others recognized his efforts.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=121-122}}

Swaminathan would go on to chair the World Food Prize Selection Committee following Borlaug.{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=423}} In ICAR, from the late 1950s onwards, he taught cytogenetics, [[radiation genetics]], and [[mutation breeding]].{{sfnp|Iyer, Scientist and Humanist: M. S. Swaminathan|2002|loc=}} Swaminathan mentored numerous Borlaug‐Ruan interns, part of the [[World Food Prize#Borlaug-Ruan Internship|Borlaug‐Ruan International Internship]].{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=427}}

=== Institution builder ===
Swaminathan established the Nuclear Research Laboratory at the IARI. He played a role in and promoting the setting up of the [[International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics|International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics]] in India; the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (now known as [[Bioversity International]]) in Italy and the [[International Centre for Research in Agroforestry|International Council for Research in Agro-Forestry]] in Kenya. He helped to build and develop a number of institutions and provided research support in China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Iran, and Cambodia.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2045-2046|2014}}

===Later years===
Swaminathan co-chaired the [[United Nations Millennium Project]] on hunger from 2002 to 2005 and was head of the [[Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs]] between 2002 and 2007.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jain |first=Ajit |date=14 September 2010 |title=Canada varsity honours Green Revolution pioneer |url=https://www.rediff.com/news/report/canada-varsity-honours-green-revolution-pioneer/20100914.htm |access-date=28 November 2021 |website=Rediff |language=en}}</ref> In 2005 [[Bruce Alberts]], President of the [[National Academy of Sciences|U.S. National Academy of Sciences]] said of Swaminathan: "At 80, M.S. retains all the energy and idealism of his youth, and he continues to inspire good behaviour and more idealism from millions of his fellow human beings on this Earth. For that, we can all be thankful".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alberts |first=Bruce |author-link=Bruce Alberts |date=25 July 2005 |title=The M. S. Swaminathan I know |url=https://brucealberts.ucsf.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/BAonSwaminathan.pdf |journal=Current Science |volume=89 |issue=2 |pages=310–311}}</ref> Swaminathan had the aim of a hunger-free India by 2007.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=114}}
[[File:Arun Kumar Sharma and Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan - Kolkata 2013-01-07 2683.JPG|thumb|Swaminathan (right) with [[Arun Kumar Sharma|A. K. Sharma]] (left), considered as the father of Indian [[cytology]],<ref name="Soni2010">{{cite book |author=Soni |first=N. K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NkmkxB3sCPUC&pg=PT375 |title=Fundamentals Of Botany |date=2010 |publisher=Tata McGraw-Hill Education |isbn=978-1-259-08349-5 |pages=375–}}</ref> in 2013 at the 100th Indian Science Congress.]]

Swaminathan was the chair of the [[National Commission on Farmers]] constituted in 2004.<ref>National Commission on Farmers, Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of India {{cite web |title=Serving Farmers and Saving Farming |url=http://nac.nic.in/concept%20papers/ncf.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070630183120/http://nac.nic.in/concept%20papers/ncf.pdf |archive-date=30 June 2007 |access-date=28 February 2007 }}</ref> In 2007, President [[A. P. J. Abdul Kalam|A.P.J. Abdul Kalam]] nominated Swaminathan to the [[Rajya Sabha]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 April 2007 |title=Swaminathan, Vatsyayan nominated to Rajya Sabha |work=The Hindu |url=http://www.hindu.com/2007/04/11/stories/2007041107401200.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924170830/http://www.hindu.com/2007/04/11/stories/2007041107401200.htm |archive-date=24 September 2008}}</ref> Swaminathan introduced one bill during his tenure, The Women Farmers' Entitlements Bill 2011, which lapsed.<ref name=":10" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jiwani |first=Subuhi |title=The Women Farmers' Entitlements Bill, 2011 |url=https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/library/resource/the-women-farmers-entitlements-bill-2011/ |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=[[People's Archive of Rural India]] (PARI) |date=11 May 2012}}</ref> One of the aims it proposed was recognising women farmers.<ref name=":11" />

A term coined by Swaminathan, 'Evergreen Revolution', based on the enduring influence of the green revolution, aims to address the continuous increase in sustainable productivity that mankind requires.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=110}} He has described it as "productivity with perpetuity".<ref name=":4" />

In his later years, he had also been part of initiatives related to bridging the [[digital divide]],<ref>{{cite report |publisher=M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation |date=2004 |title=National Alliance for Mission 2007: Every Village a Knowledge Centre: Mobilising the power of partnership |website=International Development Research Centre |hdl-access=free |hdl=10625/33827}}</ref> and bringing research to decision-makers in the field of hunger and nutrition.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Leadership Council. |url=http://www.compact2025.org/about-compact2025/governance/leadership-council/ |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160105052340/http://www.compact2025.org/about-compact2025/governance/leadership-council/ |archive-date=5 January 2016 |website=Compact2025 |quote=Leadership Council members (as of November 2015).}}</ref>

=== Personal life and death===
He was married to [[Mina Swaminathan]], whom he met in 1951 while they were both studying at Cambridge.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=84}} They lived in [[Chennai]], Tamil Nadu. Their three daughters are [[Soumya Swaminathan (scientist)|Soumya Swaminathan]] (a paediatrician), Madhura Swaminathan (an economist), and Nitya Swaminathan (gender and rural development).{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=84, 86}}

Gandhi and [[Ramana Maharshi]] influenced his life.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=88}} Of the 2000 acres owned by their family, they donated one-third to [[Vinoba Bhave]]'s cause.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=89}} In an interview in 2011, he said that when he was young, he followed [[Swami Vivekananda]].{{Sfn|Yadugiri|2011|p=1002}}

Swaminathan died at home in Chennai on 28 September 2023, at age 98.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ramakrishnan |first=T. |date=28 September 2023 |title=M.S. Swaminathan, eminent agricultural scientist, passes away |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/agriculture/agricultural-scientist-architect-of-green-revolution-ms-swaminathan-passes-away/article67356103.ece |access-date=28 September 2023 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

== Scientific career ==

=== Potato ===
In the 1950s, Swaminathan's explanation and analysis of the origin and [[evolution]]ary processes of potato was a major contribution.<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |date=1987 |title=1987 General Foods World Food Prize. Dr. M. S. Swaminathan. |url=https://www.worldfoodprize.org/documents/filelibrary/images/laureates/1987_swaminathan/SKM_C454e19040911330_5AB8B5F957C8D.pdf |website=worldfoodprize.org}}</ref> He elucidated its origin as an [[Polyploidy|autotetraploid]] and its cell division behaviour.<ref name=":7">{{Cite journal |last=Rabbinge |first=Rudy |date=10 February 2018 |title=Book Review- M. S. Swaminathan: Legend in Science and Beyond. P. C. Kesavan. World Scientific. |journal=Current Science |volume=114 |issue=3 |pages=686–689 |doi=10.18520/cs/v114/i03/686-687}}</ref> His findings related to [[Polyploidy|polyploids]] were also significant.<ref name=":7" /> Swaminathan's thesis in 1952 was based on his [[basic research]] related to "species differentiation and the nature of polyploidy in certain species of the genus Solanum, section Tuberarium".{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2039|2014}} The impact was the greater ability to transfer genes from a wild species to the cultivated potato.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2041|2014}}

What made his research on potatoes valuable was its real-world application in the development of new potato varieties.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2036|2014}} During his postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Wisconsin, he helped develop a frost-resistant potato.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2036|2014}} His genetic analysis of potatoes, including the genetic traits that govern yield and growth, important factors in increasing productivity, was pivotal. His multi-disciplinary [[Systems theory|systems approach]] perspective brought together many different genetic facets.{{Sfn|Rabbinge|2015|p=440}}

=== Wheat ===
In the 1950s and 1960s Swaminathan did [[basic research]] into the cytogenetics of [[hexaploid wheat]].{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2041|2014}} The varieties of wheat and rice developed by Swaminathan and Borlaug were foundational to the green revolution.{{Sfn|Rabbinge|2015|p=440}}

=== Rice ===
Efforts towards growing rice with [[C4 carbon fixation|C<sub>4</sub> carbon fixation]] capabilities, which would allow a better photosynthesis and water usage, were started at IRRI under Swaminathan.{{Sfn|Rabbinge|2015|p=440}} Swaminathan also played a role in the development of the world's first high-yielding [[basmati]].{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=51-52}}

=== Radiation botany ===
The Genetics Division of the IARI under Swaminathan was globally renowned for its research on [[mutagen]]s.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2039|2014}} He set up a '[[Cobalt-60]] Gamma Garden' to study radiation [[mutation]].<ref name=":7" />{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2041|2014}} Swaminathan's association with [[Homi J. Bhabha]], [[Vikram Sarabhai]], [[Raja Ramanna|Raja Ramana]], [[M. R. Srinivasan]] and other Indian nuclear scientists allowed agricultural scientists to access facilities at the Atomic Energy Establishment, [[Trombay]] (which would later become the [[Bhabha Atomic Research Centre]]).{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2039|2014}} Swaminathan's first PhD student, A. T. Natarajan, would go on to write his thesis in this direction.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2039|2014}} One of the aims of such research was to increase plant responsiveness to fertilisers and demonstrate real-world application of crop mutations.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2041|2014}} Swaminathan's early [[basic research]] on the effects of radiation on cells and organisms partly formed the base of future [[redox]] biology.{{Sfn|Kesavan|Iyer|p=2042|2014}}

{{Interlanguage link|Rudy Rabbinge|lt=Rudy Rabbinge|nl}} calls Swaminathan's paper on [[neutron radiation]] in agriculture in 1966 presented at an [[International Atomic Energy Agency]] conference in the United States  as "epoch-making".<ref name=":7" /> The work of Swaminathan and his colleagues was relevant to [[food irradiation]].<ref name=":7" />

== Public recognition ==
[[File:Manmohan Singh, presenting the B. P. Pal Centenary Award to Prof. M. S. Swaminathan on the occasion of B. P. Pal Centenary celebrations (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|215x215px|The [[Benjamin Peary Pal|B. P. Pal]] Centenary Award, eponymously named after the Indian agricultural scientist, being awarded to Swaminathan in 2006.]]

=== Awards and honours ===
Swaminathan received the [[Gregor Mendel|Mendel]] Memorial Medal from the [[Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences]] in 1965.{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=9}} Following this he received numerous international awards and honours, including the [[Ramon Magsaysay Award]] (1971),<ref name=":1" /> the [[Albert Einstein World Award of Science|Albert Einstein World Science Award]] (1986), the first [[World Food Prize]] (1987),<ref name=":22"/> the [[Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement]] (1991),{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=9}} the [[Four Freedoms Award]] (2000),{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=124}} and the Planet and Humanity Medal of the [[International Geographical Union]] (2000).{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=125}} When accepting the Ramon Magsaysay Award, Swaminathan quoted [[Seneca the Younger|Seneca]]: "A hungry person listens neither to reason, nor to religion, nor is bent by any prayer."{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=95}}

He was conferred with the [[Order of the Golden Heart]] of the [[Philippines]],{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=122}} the [[Order of Agricultural Merit]] of France, the [[Order of the Golden Ark]] of [[Netherlands]],{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=126}} and the [[Royal Order of Sahametrei]] of Cambodia.{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=9}} China awarded him with the "Award for International Co-operation on Environment and Development".{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=127}} In the 'Dr Norman E. Borlaug Hall of Laureates' at [[Des Moines, Iowa]], United States, there is an artwork of Swaminathan made up of 250,000 pieces of glass.{{Sfn|Quinn|2015|p=417}} The IRRI has named a building and a scholarship fund after him.{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=9}}

One of the first national awards he received was the [[Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award]] in 1961.{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=8}} Following this he was conferred [[Padma Shri]], [[Padma Bhushan]], and [[Padma Vibhushan]] awards, as well as the [[H K Firodia awards|H K Firodia award]], the [[Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award]], and the [[Indira Gandhi Prize]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Prof. Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan |url=https://naas.org.in/detail.php?id=551 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126215003/https://naas.org.in/detail.php?id=551 |archive-date=26 November 2021 |access-date=26 November 2021 |website=[[National Academy of Agricultural Sciences]], India}}</ref> As of 2016, he had received 33 national and 32 international awards.{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=8-9}}  In 2004, an agricultural think-tank in India named an annual award after Swaminathan, the eponymously named 'Dr. M.S. Swaminathan Award for Leadership in Agriculture'.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dr. M.S. Swaminathan Award for Leadership in Agriculture |url=https://www.icar.org.in/content/dr-ms-swaminathan-award-leadership-agriculture |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130114701/https://www.icar.org.in/content/dr-ms-swaminathan-award-leadership-agriculture |archive-date=30 November 2021 |website=Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare}}</ref>

On 9 February 2024, he was conferred the [[Bharat Ratna]] posthumously, the highest civilian award of the Republic of India. On that occasion, then PM of India, [[Narendra Modi]] wrote:<ref>https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/dr-ms-swaminathan-to-be-awarded-bharat-ratna-pm/ Dr. MS Swaminathan to be awarded Bharat Ratna: PM]. [[Prime Minister's Office (India)|Prime Minister's Office]].</ref>
{{quote|It is a matter of immense joy that the Government of India is conferring the Bharat Ratna on Dr. MS Swaminathan Ji, in recognition of his monumental contributions to our nation in agriculture and farmers’ welfare. He played a pivotal role in helping India achieve self-reliance in agriculture during challenging times and made outstanding efforts towards modernizing Indian agriculture. We also recognise his invaluable work as an innovator and mentor and encouraging learning and research among several students. Dr. Swaminathan’s visionary leadership has not only transformed Indian agriculture but also ensured the nation’s food security and prosperity. He was someone I knew closely and l always valued his insights and inputs.}}

=== Honorary doctorates and fellowships ===
[[File:The President Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam presenting the First Dr. M.S. Swaminathan Award for Leadership in Agriculture to Dr. Norman E. Borlaug at an Award function in New Delhi on March 15, 2005.jpg|thumb|[[Norman Borlaug|Norman E. Borlaug]] being awarded the first M. S. Swaminathan Award for Leadership in Agriculture by President [[A. P. J. Abdul Kalam]] in New Delhi in 2005.]]
Swaminathan was the recipient of 84 honorary doctorates and was a guide for numerous Ph.D. scholars.<ref name=":3" />{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=1-2}} [[Sardar Patel University]] conferred him with an honorary degree in 1970; [[Delhi University]], [[Banaras Hindu University]] and others would follow.<ref name=":9" /> Internationally, [[Technische Universität Berlin]] (1981) and the [[Asian Institute of Technology]] (1985) honoured him.<ref name=":9" /> The [[University of Wisconsin]] honoured Swaminathan with an honorary doctorate in 1983.{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=39-40}} When the [[University of Massachusetts, Boston]], honoured him with a science doctorate, they commented on the "magnificent inclusiveness of [Swaminathan's] concerns, by nation, socioeconomic group, gender, inter-generational, and including both human and natural environments".{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=81}} [[Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge]], from where he received his PhD in botany, made him an honorary fellow in 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 November 2014 |title=Professor M S Swaminathan is new Honorary Fellow |url=https://www.fitz.cam.ac.uk/news/professor-m-s-swaminathan-new-honorary-fellow |access-date=1 December 2021 |website=Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge |language=en}}</ref>

Swaminathan had been elected a fellow of a number of science academies in India. Internationally he had been recognised as a fellow by 30{{Sfn|Gopalkrishnan|2002|p=1-2}} academies of science and societies across the world including the United States, the United Kingdom ([[Fellow of the Royal Society]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=SharathKumar |first1=Malleshaiah |last2=Paroda |first2=Rajendra S. |last3=Varshney FRS |first3=Rajeev K. |date=2025 |title=Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan. 7 August 1925—28 September 2023 |journal=Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society |volume=78|doi=10.1098/rsbm.2024.0018 |doi-access=free }}</ref>), Russia, Sweden, Italy, China, Bangladesh, as well as the [[European Academy of Sciences and Arts|European Academy of Arts, Science and Humanities]].<ref name=":3" />{{sfnp|Biotech Express|2016|p=12}} He was a founder fellow of [[The World Academy of Sciences]].<ref name=":3" /> The [[National Agrarian University]] in Peru conferred him with an honorary professorship.<ref name=":9" />

==Publications==
{{Multiple image
| image1 = The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh releasing Dr. M. S. Swaminathan’s book titled “From Green to Evergreen Revolution – Indian Agriculture Performance and Challenges”, in New Delhi on September 28, 2010 (cropped).jpg
| image2 = The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi releasing a 2 part book series on Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, titled - M.S. Swaminathan The Quest for a world without hunger, in New Delhi (cropped).jpg
| direction = horizontal
| header =
| caption1 = Prime Minister of India [[Manmohan Singh|M. Singh]] with ''From Green to Evergreen Revolution''
| caption2 = Prime Minister of India [[Narendra Modi|N. Modi]] with a two-part book series on Swaminathan
| total_width = 340
}}
Swaminathan published 46 single-author papers between 1950 and 1980. In total he had 254 papers to his credit, 155 of which he was the single or first author. His scientific papers are in the fields of [[Agronomy|crop improvement]] (95), [[cytogenetics]] and [[genetics]] (87) and [[phylogenetics]] (72). His most frequent publishers were ''Indian Journal of Genetics'' (46), ''[[Current Science]]'' (36), ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'' (12) and ''Radiation Botany'' (12).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kalyane |first1=V. L. |last2=Kalyane |first2=S. V. |title=Scientometric portrait of M. S. Swaminathan |journal=Library Science |date=1994 |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=31–46 |url=http://eprints.rclis.org/4785/}}</ref> Selected publications include:
* {{Cite journal |last=Swaminathan |first=M.S. |date=1951 |title=Notes on induced polyploids in the tuber-bearing Solanum species and their crossability with Solanum tuberosum. |journal=American Potato Journal |volume=28 |pages=472–489 |doi=10.1007/BF02854980 |s2cid=38717901}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Howard |first1=H. W. |last2=Swaminathan |first2=M. S. |date=1953 |title=The cytology of haploid plants of Solanum demissum |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/BF01690622 |journal=Genetica |language=en |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=381–391 |doi=10.1007/BF01690622 |pmid=13142313 |s2cid=39650946 |issn=0016-6707|url-access=subscription }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |last2=Hougas |first2=R. W. |date=1954 |title=Cytogenetic Studies in Solanum verrucosum Variety Spectabilis |journal=American Journal of Botany |volume=41 |issue=8 |pages=645–651 |doi=10.2307/2438291 |jstor=2438291 |issn=0002-9122}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |date=1 January 1954 |title=Nature of Polyploidy in Some 48-Chromosome Species of the Genus Solanum, Section Tuberarium |url=https://www.genetics.org/content/39/1/59 |journal=Genetics |language=en |volume=39 |issue=1 |pages=59–76 |doi=10.1093/genetics/39.1.59 |issn=0016-6731 |pmid=17247468 |pmc=1209637 |url-access=limited}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |date=November 1955 |title=Overcoming Cross-Incompatibility among some Mexican Diploid Species of Solanum |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/176887b0 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=176 |issue=4488 |pages=887–888 |doi=10.1038/176887b0 |bibcode=1955Natur.176..887S |s2cid=4266064 |issn=1476-4687 |url-access=limited}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |date=September 1956 |title=Disomic and Tetrasomic Inheritance in a Solanum Hybrid |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/178599b0 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=178 |issue=4533 |pages=599–600 |doi=10.1038/178599b0 |bibcode=1956Natur.178..599S |s2cid=4298507 |issn=1476-4687 |url-access=limited}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |last2=Murty |first2=B. R. |date=1 November 1959 |title=Aspects of Asynapsis in Plants. I. Random and Non Random Chromosome Associations |url=https://www.genetics.org/content/44/6/1271 |journal=Genetics |language=en |volume=44 |issue=6 |pages=1271–1280 |doi=10.1093/genetics/44.6.1271 |issn=0016-6731 |pmid=17247892 |pmc=1224432}}

In addition he has written a few books on the general theme of his life's work, biodiversity and sustainable agriculture for alleviation of hunger. Swaminathan's books, papers, dialogues and speeches include:
{{div col|colwidth=35em}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |title=Major Flowering Trees of Tropical Gardens |last2=Kochhar |first2=S. L. |date=2019 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-48195-3 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C6BEDwAAQBAJ |title=50 Years of Green Revolution: An Anthology of Research Papers |date=2017 |publisher=[[World Scientific]] |isbn=978-981-320-007-4 |language=en}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |title=EDITORIAL: Zero hunger |journal=Science |date=2014 |volume=345 |issue=6196 |page=491 |doi=10.1126/science.1258820 |jstor=24745192 |pmid=25082671 |s2cid=206560890|doi-access=free |bibcode=2014Sci...345..491S }}
* {{Cite book |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Uyq7CgAAQBAJ |title=In Search Of Biohappiness: Biodiversity And Food, Health And Livelihood Security |date=2011 |publisher=[[World Scientific]] |isbn=978-981-4462-56-3 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u_qi8m3yW-cC |title=Science and Sustainable Food Security: Selected Papers of M S Swaminathan |date=2010 |publisher=[[World Scientific]] |isbn=978-981-4282-11-6 |language=en}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |title=An Evergreen Revolution |journal=Crop Science |date=September 2006 |volume=46 |issue=5 |pages=2293–2303 |doi=10.2135/cropsci2006.9999}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Swaminathan |first1=M. S. |title=Revolutions to Green the Environment, to Grow the Human Heart: A Dialogue Between M.S. Swaminathan, Leader of the Ever-green Revolution and Daisaku Ikeda, Proponent of the Human Revolution |last2=Ikeda |first2=Daisaku |author-link2=Daisaku Ikeda |date=2005 |publisher=East West Books (Madras) |isbn=978-81-88661-34-3 |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |title=Halving Hunger: It Can Be Done |publisher=[[United Nations Millennium Project]] Hunger Task Force |year=2005|bibcode=2005hhcb.book.....U }}
* {{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EOfaAAAAMAAJ |title=Gender Dimensions in Biodiversity Management |date=1998 |publisher=Konark Publishers |others=Papers presented at a workshop held at [[MS Swaminathan Research Foundation|MSSRF]] in June 1997 |isbn=978-81-220-0531-8 |editor-last=Swaminthan |editor-first=M. S. |language=en}}
* {{Cite web |last=Swaminathan |first=M. S. |date=1997 |title=Implementing the benefit-sharing provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity: Challenges and opportunities |url=https://www.ecolex.org/details/literature/implementing-the-benefit-sharing-provisions-of-the-convention-on-biological-diversity-challenges-and-opportunities-ana-062241/ |access-date=26 November 2021 |website= |publisher=Plant Genetic Resources Newsletter (No. 112) |pages=19–27 |via=ecolex.org}}
* {{Cite book |title=Wheat Revolution—A dialogue. |date=1993 |publisher=Macmillan India |editor-last=Swaminathan |editor-first=M.S.}}
{{div col end}}

===Controversies===
In the 1970s, a scientific paper in which Swaminathan and his team claimed to have produced a mutant breed of wheat by gamma irradiation of a Mexican variety (Sonora 64) resulting in ''Sharbati Sonora,'' claimed to have a very high lysine content, led to a major controversy. The case was claimed to be an error made by the laboratory assistant.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kohn |first1=Alexander |title=False Prophets |date=1997 |publisher=Barnes & Noble Books |isbn=978-0-7607-0407-3}}{{page needed|date=November 2021}}</ref> The episode was also compounded by the suicide of an agricultural scientist.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hanlon |first=Joseph |date=7 November 1974 |title=Top food scientist published false data |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L-SSHIVt30cC&dq=Top+food+scientist+published+false+data&pg=PA436 |journal=[[New Scientist]] |volume=64 |issue=922 |pages=436–437 |via=Google Books }}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=Robert S. |title=Cultivating Science as Cultural Policy: A Contrast of Agricultural and Nuclear Science in India |journal=Pacific Affairs |date=1983 |volume=56 |issue=1 |pages=38–50 |doi=10.2307/2758769 |jstor=2758769}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Borlaug |first1=Norman E. |last2=Anderson |first2=R. Glenn |date=30 January 1975 |others=Joseph Hanlon |title=Letters. Defence of Swaminathan. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kbnD_NF4C8MC&dq=Defence+of+Swaminathan&pg=PA280 |journal=[[New Scientist]] |volume=65 |issue=934 |pages=280–281 |via=Google Books }}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Silow |first1=R. A. |last2=Kumar |first2=Anand |date=6 February 1975 |title=Letters. Swaminathan controversy. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pnV6UYEkU4YC&dq=Swaminathan+controversy&pg=PA339 |journal=[[New Scientist]] |volume=65 |issue=935 |page=339 |via=Google Books }}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Seshachar |first1=B. R. |last2=Fischer |first2=D. A. V. |date=26 December 1974 |title=Letters. Swaminathan controversy. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=khzDRYfj97AC&dq=Swaminathan+controversy&pg=PA948 |journal=[[New Scientist]] |volume=64 |issue=929 |page=948 |via=Google Books }}{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> It has been studied as part of a systemic problem in Indian agriculture research.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Raina |first1=Rajeswari Sarala |title=Professionalization and evaluation: The case of Indian agricultural research |journal=Knowledge, Technology & Policy |date=December 1999 |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=69–96 |doi=10.1007/s12130-999-1004-6}}</ref>

A paper published in the  25 November 2018 edition of ''[[Current Science]]'' titled 'Modern Technologies for Sustainable Food and Nutrition Security' listed Swaminathan as a co-author.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Vembu |first=Venky |date=24 December 2018 |title=Storm in a scientific teacup |url=https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/columns/from-the-viewsroom/storm-in-a-scientific-teacup/article25814221.ece |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=The Hindu BusinessLine}}</ref> The article was criticised by a number of scientific experts, including [[K. VijayRaghavan]], the [[Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India|principal scientific adviser to the Government of India]], who commented that it was "deeply flawed and full of errors".<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramesh |first=Sandhya |date=19 December 2018 |title=How MS Swaminathan, father of India's Green Revolution, got GM crops 'all wrong' |url=https://theprint.in/science/how-ms-swaminathan-father-of-indias-green-revolution-got-gm-crops-all-wrong/166011/ |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=ThePrint |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nandi |first=Jayashree |date=21 December 2018 |title=Prof MS Swaminathan distances himself from his anti-GM write-up |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/ms-swaminathan-distances-himself-from-his-anti-gm-write-up/story-Pi4gqDgGlH9P8OG3OO0HBL.html |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=Hindustan Times}}</ref> Swaminathan claimed that his role in the paper was "extremely limited" and that he shouldn't have been named as the co-author.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramesh |first=Sandhya |date=20 December 2018 |title=Shouldn't have been named author of anti-GM paper: MS Swaminathan |url=https://theprint.in/science/shouldnt-have-been-named-author-of-anti-gm-paper-ms-swaminathan/166537/ |access-date=30 November 2021 |website=ThePrint |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Explanatory footnotes ==
{{Notelist}}

==Citations==
{{Reflist}}

== Cited and general references and further reading ==
* {{cite journal |last1=Hariharan |first1=G. N. |last2=Kesavan |first2=P. C. |title=Birth and growth of M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, Chennai |journal=Current Science |date=2015 |volume=109 |issue=3 |pages=502–512 |jstor=24906104}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Denning |first1=Glenn |title=Fostering international collaboration for food security and sustainable development: a personal perspective of M. S. Swaminathan's vision, impact and legacy for humanity |journal=Current Science |date=2015 |volume=109 |issue=3 |pages=447–455 |jstor=24906099}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Rabbinge |first1=Rudy |title=M. S. Swaminathan: his contributions to science and public policy |journal=Current Science |date=2015 |volume=109 |issue=3 |pages=439–446 |jstor=24906098}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Yadugiri |first1=V. T. |title=M. S. Swaminathan |journal=Current Science |date=2011 |volume=101 |issue=8 |pages=996–1002 |jstor=24079264}}
* {{Cite magazine |last=Singh |first=Kamal |date=January 2016 |title=M S Swaminathan "Father of Indian Green Revolution". Interview. |url=http://www.biotechexpressmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Interview-Prof-M-S-Swaminathan.pdf |magazine=Biotech Express |volume=3 |issue=30 |pages=6–17 |issn=2454-6968 |ref={{sfnref|Biotech Express|2016}}}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Kalyane |first=V.L. |date=July–September 1992 |title=Dr M.S. Swaminathan – Biologist Par Excellence |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/11877006.pdf |journal=Biology Education |pages=246–248 |via=[[CORE (research service)|CORE]], [[Open University]]}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Kesavan |first1=P. C. |last2=Iyer |first2=R. D. |date=25 December 2014 |title=M. S. Swaminathan: a journey from the frontiers of life sciences to the state of a 'Zero Hunger' world |journal=Current Science |volume=107 |issue=12 |pages=2036–2051}}

=== Biographies ===
; Books
* {{cite book |last1=Gopalkrishnan |first1=G |title=M.S. Swaminathan: One Man's Quest for a Hunger-free World |date=2002 |publisher=Education Development Centre |oclc=643489739}}
* {{cite book |last1=Iyer |first1=R. D. |title=Scientist and Humanist: M.S. Swaminathan |date=2002 |publisher=Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan |isbn=978-81-7276-260-5}}
* — {{Citation |last=Iyer |first=R. D. |title=An extract from Scientist and Humanist: M. S. Swaminathan. |url=http://www.harmonyindia.org/hportal/VirtualPageView.jsp?page_id=1432 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927143642/http://www.harmonyindia.org/hportal/VirtualPageView.jsp?page_id=1432 |others=harmonyindia.org |ref={{sfnref|Iyer, Scientist and Humanist: M. S. Swaminathan|2002}} |archive-date=27 September 2007}}
* {{cite book |last1=Kesavan |first1=P. C. |title=M.S. Swaminathan: Legend In Science And Beyond |date=2017 |publisher=World Scientific |isbn=978-981-320-011-1}}
* {{cite thesis |last1=Parasuraman |title=Perasiriyar Maa Saa Swaminathan Vazhum Panium |date=13 August 2020 |hdl=10603/294255 |hdl-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last1=Erdélyi |first1=András |title=The Man who Harvests Sunshine: The Modern Gandhi: M.S. Swaminathan |date=2002 |publisher=Tertia |isbn=978-963-9387-08-9}}
* {{cite book |last1=Dil |first1=Anwar S |last2=Swaminathan |first2=Monkombu Sambasivan |title=Life and work of M. S. Swaminathan toward a hunger-free world |date=2005 |publisher=East West Books (Madras) |isbn=978-81-88661-33-6 |oclc=1068850456}}
* {{Cite book |last=Deulgaonkar |first=Atul |title=स्वामीनाथन: भूकमुक्तीचा ध्यास |publisher=Sadhana Prakashan |year=2000 |isbn=978-93-86273-19-2 |trans-title=Swaminathan: Bhukmukticha Dhyas (Liberator from hunger)}}

; Short biographies
* {{cite journal |last1=Quinn |first1=Kenneth M. |title=M. S. Swaminathan-Scientist, Hunger Fighter, World Food Prize Laureate |journal=Current Science |date=1 August 2015 |volume=109 |issue=3 |pages=417–429 |id={{EBSCOhost|108871418}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128200611/http://www.ischolar.info/index.php/CURS/article/view/86519 |archive-date=28 November 2021 |doi=10.18520/cs/v109/i3/417-429 |doi-broken-date=11 June 2025 |url=http://www.ischolar.info/index.php/CURS/article/view/86519}}
* {{cite book |last=Gopalan |first=Shanti |title=Scientists of International Repute |publisher=Sura Books |isbn=978-81-7478-628-9 |pages=39–44}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|wikt=no|c=yes|n=no|q=yes|author=no|b=no|v=no|d=yes|species_author=no|mw=no}}
{{Scholia|Q982109}}
* {{url|https://www.mssrf.org/content/founder-prof-m-s-swaminathan|mssrf.org}}
* {{PubMedAuthorSearch|Swaminathan|MS}}
* [https://www.nal.usda.gov/agricola?searchType=7&searchId=24120&maxResultsPerPage=50&recCount=50&recPointer=0&resultPointer=0&headingId=2007708 Search Results for author Swaminathan, M. S.] on [[AGRICOLA]], [[United States National Agricultural Library|US National Agricultural Library]]
* {{Britannica|576207}}
* {{URL|https://prsindia.org/mptrack/rajya-sabha/msswaminathan|M.S. Swaminathan Rajya Sabha profile at PRS Legislative Research}}
* [https://rajyasabha.nic.in/rsnew/publication_electronic/Member_Biographical_Book.pdf Official Rajya Sabha, Parliament of India, profile], p. 515
* [https://catalogue.archives.ncbs.res.in/repositories/2/resources/22 Catalogue of the Swaminathan papers at the Archives at NCBS]

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