Farmers should get Padma awards: M.S. Swaminathan

BHUBANESWAR - A few days after the Padma awards were announced, renowned agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan Saturday rued the absence of farmers in the list. He said cricketers, dancers and film actors are certainly important but “let us remember farmers are equally important too.”

Speaking during a programme “Effective Community Management of Bio-diversity in an Era of Climate Change” in Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology, Bhubaneswar, Swaminathan said Padma awards, if given to farmers, would certainly enthuse the farming community which constitutes more than 70 percent of India’a population.

“Farming community constitutes more than 70 percent of our population. But not a single farmer figured in the awards,” Swaminathan said.

“Cricketers, dancers and film actors and others are certainly important but let us remember farmers are equally important too,” he added, saying he does not underplay the importance of those who are nominated for the awards.

He said by nominating others, overlooking the farmers, “we are certainly overlooking a large chunk of our population.”

“Awards are symbolic. But the self-esteem of farmers will go up if we include them in the Padma awards,” he suggested.