Surajit Kumar De Datta

Surajit Kumar De Datta

Views: 4212

Category: Science

Surajit Kumar De Datta Profile

  • Name:
  • Surajit Kumar De Datta
  • Spouse:
  • L. Vijayalakshmi

Surajit Kumar De Datta Biography

Surajit Kumar De Datta is an Indian American agronomist known for his outstanding contributions to Indian agriculture. An unsung hero, he is best known for his high yield variety of rice IR-8, which played a significant role in the green revolution of the 20th century in Asia. Associated with International Rice Research Institute in Philippines for long 27 years, he is currently settled in USA with his wife, L. Vijayalakshmi, a former actress of south Indian film industry. He authored - Principles and Practices of Rice Production, which is known as a referral book to this field. He has also authored two more books on agriculture - "Availability of Phosphorus and Utilization of Phosphate Fertilizers in Some Great Soil Groups of Hawaii" and "Availability of Phosphorus to Sugar Cane in Hawaii as Influenced by Various Phosphorus Fertilizers and Methods of Application" (co-authored with James C. Moomaw).

 

In 1968, as a young agronomist at the International Rice Research Institute, he published his findings that a semi-dwarf variety of rice, known as IR-8, could produce 10 times the yield of traditional rice. He tested the IR8 variety under different fertilizer conditions and got amazed with its results. The IR8 rice produced around 5 tons per hectare with no fertilizer which was 10 times the traditional rice yield. Thus Surajit is regarded as one among the architects of Green Revolution in Asia.

 

Though he primarily worked in Philippines and later at Virginia Tech in the US, he had a global reach through his research works. He served as the principal investigator and administrator for global projects across 44 countries. He has been named a Fellow by several organizations including American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America, National Academy of Agricultural Sciences in India and Indian Society of Soil Science. He has published 366 journal articles, basically on weed, soil and crop management.

Published: N/A

Updated: December 30, 2015

Famous People: By Profession

 
 

Suggest Khem Singh Gill profile update

captcha image (Can't see? refresh)