Tuesday, 3 February 2026
The 7th Dr MS Swaminathan Award for 2017-2019 was awarded to Dr V Praveen Rao, the Vice-Chancellor of Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University. This biennial national award jointly constituted by Retired ICAR Employees Association (RICAREA) and Nuziveedu Seeds Limited (NSL) carries a cash prize of Rs 2 Lakhs, a Gold Medal and a citation. The Award Selection Committee met on 07.03.2020 which was chaired by Dr RS Paroda (Former Director General, ICAR) selected Dr Praveen Rao from among a panel of 13 top national scientists from the fields of agriculture, horticulture and veterinary sciences who were considered for the award. The selection committee stated that the outstanding and innovative contributions of Dr Praveen Rao in the areas of agricultural research, teaching, extension and administration clinched the award for him in a very closely contested selection.
Dr Praveen Rao who currently is the first Vice-Chancellor of Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University has, to his credit, outstanding contributions in the area of micro-irrigation. He has handled 13 research and six consultancy projects of micro-irrigation in India, Israel and South Africa. He was a technical advisor and was instrumental in the formulation and commissioning world’s largest micro-irrigation project covering an area of 0.9 million hectares and this project is considered a milestone in Indian agriculture. He is also currently a member of the Telangana State Council of CII.
The Retired Indian Council of Agricultural Research Employees’ Association (RICAREA) was formed in 1997 to serve the cause of agriculture based on the ideals and objectives of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), by collaborating with Governmental Agencies, NGOs, Public & Private enterprises, and farming communities with the aid of the rich experience of its Members viz., retired personnel of the ICAR. The Association is also serving as a pool of resource persons for scientific and extension bodies, besides bringing awareness of developments in science and technology among the farming community and general public. At present, the Association has a membership of 500.
