PM Modi to Attend 50th Anniversary Celebrations of ICRISAT

The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) will mark its 50th anniversary celebrations on Saturday with an official visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to its worldwide headquarters in Patancheru. 

Telangana Governor Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan, CM K Chandrashekar Rao, and Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar are among the other VIPs expected to attend the event. 

Since its inception on March 28, 1972, as part of a global institutional framework to share scientific agricultural breakthroughs and innovations, ICRISAT has assisted the rural populace in one of the world's harshest dry land regions in overcoming poverty, malnutrition, and environmental degradation. ICRISAT, which was founded by the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, has played an important role in crop improvement by releasing 1,181 varieties of sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet, chickpea, pigeon pea, and groundnut in 81 countries by 2021. 

ICRISAT's gene bank curated 1,28,979 accessions from 144 countries, and more than 1.5 million samples were delivered to 149 countries, giving dry land farmers access to high-quality seed of modern varieties. As the only International Agricultural Research Center (IARC) with headquarters in India, ICRISAT has worked closely with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). 

Talasani to meet PM Modi today 

PM Narendra Modi will be greeted by Animal Husbandry Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav on his visit to Hyderabad today. "Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has agreed to appoint Talasani Srinivas Yadav as Minister-in-waiting to receive and see off the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his arrival and departure.  You are requested to take the necessary action," said the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister in a letter to the Principal Secretary General Administration Department (Political). 

Cops banned use of drones till February 15^th 

With immediate effect, the Cyberabad police commissionerate has prohibited all remotely controlled drone flying operations at the ICRISAT and Statue of Equality sites. Drones will be prohibited at ICRISAT on Saturday till 8 p.m. and at the Sri Ramanagaram JIVA Campus in Shamshabad until February 15.