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Seminars National Seminar
12-14 February 2010
 Biodiversity, the diversity of life on earth is essential to
sustaining and the living networks and systems that provide us
all with health, wealth, food, fuel and the vital services our
lives depend on. It is linked with health and food security and
threats to biodiversity affect the food security and our health.
In this context CISSA organized a three-day National Seminar on
“Health, Food & Agro-Biodiversity - Changing Paradigms” during
12-14 February2010 at Kozhikode as part of the ANNAM Festival.
187 participants from across India attended the Seminar.
The Seminar was inaugurated by Dr. K. Jayakumar, Executive
Director, Centre for Water Resources Development and Management
(CWRDM). Renowned environmental activist Dr. Vandana Shiva
delivered the key-note address. She said that the food sector is
now increasingly monopolized by larger cooperates and the
government should lift the subsidies given to fast food and
soft-drink industries in India. Climate change is aggravated by
industrialized, globalized agriculture based on fossil fuels,
and the resulting climate crisis in turn impacts food security.
“The diversion of agriculture lands to the production of fuel is
not only upsetting the ecological balance but also affecting our
energy and nutritional security. The model of green revolution
is based on monoculture and in India with so much diversity in
agricultural crops, promoting diversity is the only way towards
sustainable management of our natural resources. We need to
focus more on nutrient budget of the soil and water conservation
when we think in terms of new paradigms in this field” She said.
According Dr. Vandana, biodiverse ecological agriculture
provides higher nutrition and food per acre than industrial
agriculture. It reduces emissions and mitigates climate change,
while also helping adapt to it. Dr. Vandana also released the
abstract and proceedings of the seminar by presenting a copy to
Dr. M.P. Nayar, former Director, Botanical Survey of India.
Prof. P.V. Madhusoodanan of Calicut University was the president
of the inaugural session. Dr. G.G. Ganagadharan, President,
CISSA, Dr. K.G. Ajit kumar and Dr. N.S. Pradeep spoke on the
occasion. The Seminar highlighted the urgent need for focusing
on our highly diverse agro-biodiversity, especially the lesser
known food crops, in order for achieving sustainable food
production and nutritional security. The quality of food, and
not just its quantity, ought to guide our agriculture, said
Prof. PS Ramakrishnan of Jawaharlal Nehru University.
In the three-day seminar, Prof. K.P. Prabhakaran Nair
(University of Belgium), Prof. P.S. Ramakrishnan (Jawaharlal
University, New Delhi), Manoj Kumar Menon (Director, ICCOA,
Bangalore), Dr. M. P. Nayar (Former Director, Botanical Survey
of India), Ignaceous Konikkara (Calicut University), Dr. T.
Vijayakumar (Former Director, School of Health Sciences, Calicut
University), Dr. Vinod Malayilethu (WWF India), Prof. C.K.
Peethambaran, Dr. Sasidharan and Dr. P.R.G. Mathur delivered
invited lectures. 56 research papers were presented in the theme
topic “Agro-biodiversity and food security” and “Food and
Health”.
 Sri Mullakkara Retnakaran, Minister for Agriculture, Govt. of
Kerala delivered the valedictory address. “The disappearance of
cultural diversity associated with agriculture is the major
threats to food security in India. We need to develop strong
networks in order to block and ward off the debilitating effects
of globalization”. He highlighted such a struggle that finally
culminated in imposing ban on the cultivation of genetically
modified Brinjal in India. He also highlighted the need for
recreating the social bonding and family values for developing
better food habits in younger generation. The meeting was
presided over by Prof. C.K. Peethambaran. Dr. K.G. Ajit Kumar
and Dr. A. Biju Kumar also spoke on the occasion.
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