Sathyanarayana Beleri is a farmer and also a paddy conservator of Nettinge village in Bellur Gramapanchayath in Kasaragod district in Kerala.[1][2] A man who turned to agriculture after completing his studies in the 10th standard, is now maintaining a gene pool of more than 650 varieties of rice using innovative methods developed by him. The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Authority, a statutory body under Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Govt of India, conferred on Sathyanarayana Beleri the Plant Genome Savior Farmer Reward for the year 2018-19 for his efforts in conserving plant agro-biodiversity.[1] In the year 2024, Govt of India honoured Sathyanarayana Beleri by conferring the Padma Shri Award for his contributions to agriculture.[3][4]

The rice varieties in his collection include Chitteni, Akrikaaya, Narikela, Suggi kayame, Vellatuven, Gandhasaale, Jeerige Sanna, Ghangadale, Kumkumsaale, Kalame, Kottambarasaale, Karigajavile, Raajamudi, Jugal Kagga, Karijeddu, Parambu Ucchan, Mysooru mallige.

References

  1. ^ a b "Plant Genome Saviour Award". coapad.kau.in. College of Agriculture, Padannakkad. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  2. ^ Ullasa M Y. "Saving heirloom paddy varieties". www.deccanherald.com. Deccan Herald. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  3. ^ George Poikayil (26 January 2024). "One man genebank: Kasaragod farmer who conserves 650 rice varieties to get Padma Shri". ONmanorama. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  4. ^ Deepthy Sanjiv (25 January 2024). "Padma Shri Award comes with more responsibility: Beleri". Times of India. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
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