Renowned agronomist and plant breeder M.S. Swaminathan’s centenary celebrations will be held in a grand manner in Tirupati on August 7.

Velamoor Rajagopal, a disciple of Dr. Swaminathan and an avid follower of his ‘Zero Hunger India’ concept, has themed the event to promote the concept of ‘Hunger-free Tirupati’.

A native of Tirupati, Dr. Rajagopal, now aged 82 years, launched Society for Hunger Elimination (SHE) after retiring as Director of Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI) at Kasaragod, Kerala.

Dr. Rajagopal was mentored on issues pertaining to food security by Dr. Swaminathan for nearly 23 years, which led to the birth of SHE as a platform to address food wastage, hunger elimination, malnutrition and allied issues.

Braving his age and the accompanying ailments, he is busy planning the schedule, which includes guest lectures by agricultural experts, competitions for school students etc.