MS Swaminathan, the father of India’s ‘Green Revolution’ died in Chennai on Thursday. He was 98. One of the most renowned agricultural scientists of the country, Swaminathan is survived by his wife Mina, and three daughters Soumya, Madhura, and Nitya. In 1987, he set up the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai.Recipient of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1971, Swaminathan is credited for developing high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice to increase the production and help lower-income farmers.Swaminathan was also awarded the Albert Einstein World Science Award in 1986 and the World Food Prize in 1987. The agronomist was also nominated as Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament in 2007.In 1999, Swaminathan featured on TIME magazines’ list of the ’20 Most Influential Asian People of the 20th Century’ along with Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore.
