B.P. Mallikarjuna Swamy

Born to a farming family in India, Dr. Swamy has always had a keen interest in agriculture from his early young age. His desire to be a researcher in agriculture to improve the livelihood of farming families made him pursue his career in Agricultural Sciences. He successfully completed his Doctoral Degree in Genetics in India, 2009. His PhD work resulted in mapping of major QTLs for yield and related traits, registered novel germplasm, and released a high yielding rice variety. The effects climate change on food security and widespread malnutrition has puzzled him as a breeder to work on the complex and challenging task of developing climate resilient and nutritious rice varieties. Later in the same year he moved to International rice research Institute (IRRI) as a Post-doctoral fellow in drought molecular Breeding, wherein he mapped major QTLs for grain yield under drought and successfully pyramided them into popular rice varieties along with other major QTLs for biotic and abiotic stresses. He significantly contributed to the genetics of drought tolerance in rice through meta-analysis and identification candidate genes. His works were well recognized at IRRI and worldwide, so he was appointed as Lead Breeder for Healthier rice development in 2013. He has been playing a pivotal role in developing healthier rice and major milestones have been achieved in developing Golden rice and Micronutrient rich rice varieties. He is also a prolific writer published in high impact journals and actively involved in disseminating knowledge of health and nutrition, and training future researchers. He is an active member of plant science societies and editorial board member of scientific Journals. His unquenching thirst for science, desire to address complex problems in rice science makes him an invaluable member of any research team.