Gurdev Khush, who was the head of the Plant Breeding Department of the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, played a key role in developing over 300 strains of rice He was awarded the World Food Prize in 1996, Borlaug Award in 1997, the Japan Prize in 1987, etc.
LOS ANGELES – The University of California, Davis, in the US has dedicated one of its buildings to Gurdev Khush, a renowned agricultural scientist.
Khush graduated from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, in 1955 and received a PhD from the University of California. He said he was on cloud nine as his alma mater had recognised his research.
The building was named after Khush at a conference on plant breeding for food security at the University of California. Over 200 scientists from around the world were attending the event.
Khush, who was the head of the Plant Breeding Department of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines, played a key role in developing over 300 strains of rice. He has played a pivotal part in bringing about the green revolution in Asia in the 1960s. He developed the IR36 and IR64 varieties that improved rice production.
Khush was awarded the World Food Prize in 1996, Borlaug Award in 1997, the Japan Prize in 1987, the Wolf Prize in 2000 in Israel, the China International Scientific and Technology Cooperation Award in 2001.
Khush, who has been working as an Adjunct Professor in the University of California since 2002, has received honorary doctorates from 15 universities, including the University of Cambridge. He has also been elected the member of the Royal Society as well as the US National Academy of Sciences. He got the Padma Shri in 2000.
Earlier, the Iranian Government had named one of its laboratories after him at the Agricultural Biotechnology Research Institution. There is a GS Khush Biotechology Lab set up at the Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, and a Khush Hall at the IRRI in Philippines.
