11th Indian Horticultural Congress Inaugurated at UAS, Bengaluru

6 November 2025, Bengaluru

The 11th edition of the Indian Horticultural Congress was inaugurated today at the University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bengaluru by Padma Bhushan Dr. R. S. Paroda, Former Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR). The inaugural session was presided over by Dr. M. L. Jat, Secretary (DARE) and Director General (ICAR).

The event was graced by several distinguished dignitaries, including Dr. S. K. Singh, President, Indian Academy of Horticultural Sciences and Deputy Director General (Horticultural Science), ICAR; Dr. S. V. Suresha, Vice-Chancellor, UAS, Bengaluru; Dr. Bhimu Patil, Texas University, USA; Mr. Mohammed Salim Mohd Ali, CEO, International Tropical Fruits Network, Malaysia; Dr. Vishnuvardhana, Vice-Chancellor, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot; Dr. S. K. Malhotra, Vice-Chancellor, Maharana Pratap Horticultural University, Karnal; Dr. T. K. Behera, ICAR-IIHR, Bengaluru; Dr. Prabhat Kumar, Horticulture Commissioner, Government of India; Dr. V. B. Patel, National Organizing Secretary and Assistant Director General (Horticultural Science), ICAR; and Dr. M. B. Prakash, Dean, GKVK, UAS, Bengaluru, along with several stalwarts of Indian horticulture.

Delivering his presidential address, Dr. M. L. Jat urged scientists to focus research and innovation efforts on nutrient-dense, opportunity, and traditional crops that can strengthen local food systems and improve public health outcomes. He emphasized the importance of wider collaborations, highlighting ongoing discussions with ICMR for translational research on biofortified crops to directly link agricultural research with nutrition and livelihoods.

Dr. Jat reiterated the three mandates outlined by the Prime Minister for the agriculture sector focusing on biofortified crops, harnessing biodiversity, and the use of bio-based inputs for soil health management. He further stressed the need to break disciplinary silos and develop synergistic, multi-institutional teams spanning the entire spectrum from discovery to delivery. He called for India’s agriculture ecosystem to move from ‘working in parts’ to operating as an integrated system that combines the strengths of the public and private sectors.

Dr. Jat also stated that the Government of India has recently initiated several new programmes, including the Clean Plant Material Mission, Mission on High-Yielding Seeds, and the Establishment of Alternative Gene Banks to safeguard the nation’s genetic diversity and enhance preparedness against potential future challenges.

In his inaugural address, Chief Guest Dr. R. S. Paroda, Former Director General, ICAR, and Padma Bhushan awardee, highlighted the timeliness of the congress in light of India’s significant growth in horticultural production. He observed that this remarkable progress has been driven by the collective efforts of farmers, scientists, policymakers, and other stakeholders. Dr. Paroda emphasized that the horticulture sector plays a pivotal role in achieving nutritional security, noting that over the past two decades, per capita fruit and vegetable consumption has more than doubled from 4 kg to 9 kg per month while horticultural production has now surpassed cereal production. He underscored the need for strong policy support, human resource development, research commercialization, post-harvest loss reduction, value addition, and a renewed focus on exports, especially of spices and high-value crops.

Dr. S. K. Singh, President, IAHS and Deputy Director General (Horticultural Science), ICAR, provided an overview of the four-day conference and highlighted the contributions of the Indian Academy of Horticultural Sciences to the development of India’s horticulture sector.

During the occasion, several awards and recognitions were conferred for outstanding contributions to horticultural research and development.

The IAHS Fellowship was awarded to Padma Shri Shri Amal Mahaling Nayak of Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka, who has developed an organic agricultural farm with a zero-energy micro-irrigation system.

The IAHS Corporate Fellowship was conferred on M/s Jain Irrigation Systems.

The IAHS Dr. K. L. Chadha Memorial Award was presented to Dr. Narayana Chawda for excellence in horticultural research and development.

The Shivashakthi Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Dr. V. A. Parthasarathi and Dr. W. S. Dhillon for their distinguished contributions to horticultural science.

On the sidelines of the event, two new rose and china aster varieties Arka Veeraraghavan and Arka Arina were released. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed between ICAR-IIHR and the Government of Uttar Pradesh for technical inputs, capacity-building programmes, and technology transfer on Kamalam (Dragon Fruit) cultivation.

(Source: ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticulture Research, Bengaluru)