SSC
Who is known as the father of the Wheat Revolution in India?
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Answer: Option D — Dr D. S. Athwal
Detailed Solution
- Athwal. Dr Dilbagh Singh Athwal, a plant breeder at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, is often called the father of the Wheat Revolution in India, for his work in developing and spreading high-yielding wheat varieties suited to Indian conditions in the 1960s.
Contributions of D. S. Athwal:
- He worked on adapting the semi-dwarf Mexican wheat varieties to the conditions of Punjab and northern India, and helped develop new high-yielding varieties.
- These varieties, combined with irrigation and fertilisers, raised wheat yields in Punjab dramatically within a few years.
- He also developed HB-1, India's first hybrid of bajra (pearl millet), released in 1965, which greatly increased bajra yields.
- He later worked at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines, where he became Associate Director, and contributed to rice research for Asia.
The Wheat Revolution:
- Between the mid-1960s and early 1970s, India's wheat production rose rapidly, especially in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.
- Punjab became known as the "granary of India" and contributed large quantities of wheat to the central pool.
- This success was the central achievement of the Green Revolution, which was much more successful in wheat than in other crops in its early years.
Other key people of the period:
- Norman Borlaug: developed the semi-dwarf wheat varieties in Mexico; Nobel Peace Prize 1970.
- S. Swaminathan: scientific leader of India's Green Revolution, who brought Borlaug's wheat to India and led its testing and adaptation.
- Subramaniam: Union Agriculture Minister (1964-67), who gave political support to the new strategy.
Institutions:
- The Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, set up in 1962, played a major role in the Green Revolution in Punjab.
- The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Pusa, New Delhi, and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research coordinated national research.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Norman Borlaug is the global father of the Green Revolution, not specifically of India's wheat revolution.
- ✗Subramaniam was the political architect of the Green Revolution.
- ✗Verghese Kurien is the father of the White Revolution (milk).
Quick tip
Remember: Father of the Wheat Revolution in India = Dr D. S. Athwal (PAU, Ludhiana; also developed HB-1 bajra hybrid).
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Agriculture in India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Agriculture in India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers agriculture in India: cropping seasons (kharif, rabi and zaid), major food and cash crops and their leading producer states, irrigation, the Green, White, Blue and other agricultural revolutions, and allied activities such as animal husbandry and fisheries. Questions usually ask which crop belongs to which season, which state is the largest producer of a crop, and which revolution relates to which product. For example, the White Revolution relates to milk and was led by Verghese Kurien, and the Blue Revolution relates to fisheries. Producer rankings can change from year to year, so check the latest data for those questions. Practise the agriculture in India questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.