It saved many nations like India from famine.
The introduction of ‘IR8’ — a new variety of rice in November 1967, by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Manila, pioneered the green revolution in rice. This year , the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of IR8’s arrival.
Indeed, it was a milestone in the field of rice research, and for the rice-growing nations of Asia too. According to reports, the arrival of IR8 saved millions from starvation in countries like India, where very few varieties of rice were available at that time. Besides jump-starting agricultural production across Asia, IR8 has had a remarkable advantage over other rice types that were grown in Asia. This variety requires nearly about 130 days to get mature, whereas the traditional ones take around 160 to 170 days.
Many rice-growing farmers and seasonal cultivators took to IR8 for this reason. Eventually, it did bring miraculous results as it helped various nations address acute problems of food shortage. The story of IR8 and the emergence of subsequent varieties during what came to be known as Green Revolution, established the fact that concerted efforts in scientific innovation can change life.
India being a traditional rice- growing nation, gained immensely from the success of IR8. Indian farmers and scientists were widely consulted, while developing the world’s first high-yielding variety of rice at the IRRI. India’s top-notch agricultural scientists such as MS Swaminathan, then Director General of the IRRI, literally brought the Green Revolution home. The IRRI and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) had developed a long collaboration in the period before and after the coming of IR8; this continues till date.
Celebrating the success of half a century of the miracle rice IR8, Director General of the ICAR, Trilochan Mohapatra, remarked: “IR8 has been used extensively in the development of subsequent rice varieties.
We should take what we have learned from our partnership with the IRRI, and use it for our country to build the rice sector strategy so we can achieve more than what we had previously.” Also, the ICAR has provided institutional support to sustain the Green Revolution and subsequent developments in Indian agriculture. With massive application of science and technology, the ICAR has enabled the country to increase the production of food grains by five times since 1951 to 2014. Apart from promoting higher education in agriculture, the ICAR has heralded a visible impact on national food and nutritional security.
IR8 was first grown in India by a farmer named Nekkanti Subba Rao, in Andhra Pradesh. He even made serious efforts to promote the rice variety, which earned him the nickname, ‘Mr IR8‘.
Then gradually, IR8 moved towards other southern States like Tamil Nadu and also to the rest of the country. Today, to make rice-growing farmers more secure and productive, India needs a full-fledged application of advanced scientific methods to be adopted in agriculture — something Prime Minister Modi has been advocating. Time has come to turn the Indian rice research community more participatory, involving more farmers — and especially women — in the process. Meanwhile, the agricultural sector itself needs a fresh dose of holistic reforms.
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[wptelegram-join-channel link=”https://t.me/s/upsctree” text=”Join @upsctree on Telegram”]2021 WEF Global Gender Gap report, which confirmed its 2016 finding of a decline in worldwide progress towards gender parity.
Over 2.8 billion women are legally restricted from having the same choice of jobs as men. As many as 104 countries still have laws preventing women from working in specific jobs, 59 countries have no laws on sexual harassment in the workplace, and it is astonishing that a handful of countries still allow husbands to legally stop their wives from working.
Globally, women’s participation in the labour force is estimated at 63% (as against 94% of men who participate), but India’s is at a dismal 25% or so currently. Most women are in informal and vulnerable employment—domestic help, agriculture, etc—and are always paid less than men.
Recent reports from Assam suggest that women workers in plantations are paid much less than men and never promoted to supervisory roles. The gender wage gap is about 24% globally, and women have lost far more jobs than men during lockdowns.
The problem of gender disparity is compounded by hurdles put up by governments, society and businesses: unequal access to social security schemes, banking services, education, digital services and so on, even as a glass ceiling has kept leadership roles out of women’s reach.
Yes, many governments and businesses had been working on parity before the pandemic struck. But the global gender gap, defined by differences reflected in the social, political, intellectual, cultural and economic attainments or attitudes of men and women, will not narrow in the near future without all major stakeholders working together on a clear agenda—that of economic growth by inclusion.
The WEF report estimates 135 years to close the gap at our current rate of progress based on four pillars: educational attainment, health, economic participation and political empowerment.
India has slipped from rank 112 to 140 in a single year, confirming how hard women were hit by the pandemic. Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two Asian countries that fared worse.
Here are a few things we must do:
One, frame policies for equal-opportunity employment. Use technology and artificial intelligence to eliminate biases of gender, caste, etc, and select candidates at all levels on merit. Numerous surveys indicate that women in general have a better chance of landing jobs if their gender is not known to recruiters.
Two, foster a culture of gender sensitivity. Take a review of current policies and move from gender-neutral to gender-sensitive. Encourage and insist on diversity and inclusion at all levels, and promote more women internally to leadership roles. Demolish silos to let women grab potential opportunities in hitherto male-dominant roles. Work-from-home has taught us how efficiently women can manage flex-timings and productivity.
Three, deploy corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds for the education and skilling of women and girls at the bottom of the pyramid. CSR allocations to toilet building, the PM-Cares fund and firms’ own trusts could be re-channelled for this.
Four, get more women into research and development (R&D) roles. A study of over 4,000 companies found that more women in R&D jobs resulted in radical innovation. It appears women score far higher than men in championing change. If you seek growth from affordable products and services for low-income groups, women often have the best ideas.
Five, break barriers to allow progress. Cultural and structural issues must be fixed. Unconscious biases and discrimination are rampant even in highly-esteemed organizations. Establish fair and transparent human resource policies.
Six, get involved in local communities to engage them. As Michael Porter said, it is not possible for businesses to sustain long-term shareholder value without ensuring the welfare of the communities they exist in. It is in the best interest of enterprises to engage with local communities to understand and work towards lowering cultural and other barriers in society. It will also help connect with potential customers, employees and special interest groups driving the gender-equity agenda and achieve better diversity.