ICAR-CISH Celebrates its 42nd Foundation Day

4 September 2025, Lucknow

ICAR–Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture, Lucknow, celebrated its 42nd Foundation Day today, commemorating its inception as the Central Mango Research Station in 1972 under the visionary leadership of the Late Padma Shri Dr. K. L. Chadha.

As a mark of tribute to his monumental contributions to Indian horticulture, a bust of Dr. Chadha was unveiled by Prof. S. K. Singh, Deputy Director General (Horticultural Science), ICAR. In recognition of his enduring legacy, the institute auditorium was also dedicated in his name as the Dr. K. L. Chadha Auditorium.

In his inaugural address, Prof. S. K. Singh reflected on Dr. Chadha’s pioneering role in shaping Indian horticulture and appreciated the institute’s remarkable achievements. He lauded the progress in varietal development, mango export protocols through sea route, Digital Orchard Health Card, smart orchard management, and post-harvest technologies. He further emphasized the need for multi-commodity clusters, development of novel nutritional products, zero-waste horticulture, diversification of fruit crops, and nutrient-efficient production systems to address future challenges.

Dr. V. B. Patel, Assistant Director General (Fruits & Plantation Crops), underscored the importance of breeding climate-resilient varieties and promoting smart orchard management practices to fortify India’s fruit sector against climate change and other emerging issues. Adding a personal note, Shri Mohit Chadha, son of Late Dr. K. L. Chadha, shared his heartfelt memories and expressed deep gratitude to the institute for honouring his father’s legacy.

Dr. T. Damodaran, Director, ICAR-CISH, presented the institute’s salient achievements and technological interventions, which include the release of new varieties of mango, guava, bael, and parwal by CVRC, development of techno-receptive mango orchards through canopy management, innovations in digital orchard management, sea-route export protocols for mango, promotion of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), advances in wilt management, and post-harvest research breakthroughs.

The celebration also witnessed the launch of the revamped CISH website, release of the Digital Orchard Health Card, and publications including books on guava, bael, and aonla as well as technical folders on CISH technologies, value addition, and production technologies of mango and guava. Furthermore, several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) were signed to foster collaboration in postgraduate education, application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in fruit production, and licensing of institute-developed varieties, thereby strengthening research, technology transfer, and value chain development.

The event was graced by Dr. R C Srivastava, former Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Dr. V. K. Mishra, former Director, ICAR for NEH Region, ICAR Directors and state officials. Scientist, KVK, CISH staff, farmers, and students, attended the program and collectively reaffirmed their commitment to advancing sustainable horticulture and contributing to the vision of a Viksit Bharat.

(Source: ICAR–Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture, Lucknow)