Forget about architecture for buildings. It is time for crops architecture. Agricultural scientists now believe that it is important for plants to grow uniformly – as uniform as soldiers stand in order. Scientists at the Indian Institute of Pulses Research (Kanpur) have made headway in this regard. ICAR (Indian Council of Agriculture Research) has asked the institute to identify markers that govern architecture so that it could be deployed in pulses.

“This is very important to let plants grow to a common height with leaves elevated well above the ground level (in case of legumes in which ICAR began research) so that leaves do not droop on to the ground. This generally leads to infections. Architecture also ensures leaves face the sun with the best possible angle so that plant gets the best photosynthesis,” Dr Swapan K Datta, Deputy Director General of ICAR, told Business Line.

This would not only provide a solution to post-harvest losses by encouraging mechanisation, but also address the acute shortage of agricultural labour. “We have a model ready. If the crop is uniform, a harvester fitted to even a bicycle could do the harvesting in small fields,” he said. Dr Datta was here to take part in the five-day General Research meeting of GCP (Generation Challenge Programme).

Dr Datta had felt that restrictions on India to use Golden Rice events should be done away with. “It is should be the prerogative of the Indian Government on how to go about it,” he said, replying to a question on how long it would take for farmers to get access to the much publicised Golden Rice. He said agriculture research firm Syngenta gave the go-ahead but it was the Golden Rice Humanitarian Board that was not coming up with a decision to allow India to grow the genetically modified rice studded with Vitamin A.

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