The current socio-economic situation of India presents complex problems of environmental pollution and decline of farm income coupled with rural poverty.

There are no simple solutions to the above issues; but a careful analysis of the available options does suggest some silver-linings amidst the rapidly darkening horizons. One such ameliorating options would be gradual restoration of soil fertility and enhancement of agri-ecosystems by including productive tree plantations in rural scenario.

Pongamia pinnata, popularly known in India as Karanj has been found to be one of the most sustainable trees with regard to its soil enhancement and carbon sequestration properties apart from its stability in seed and oil yield. Pongamia pinnata is also credited with several preventive and curative properties as established by Ayurvedic medicine. It may be recalled that in the decades of nineteen seventies a few villages reaped sustainable incomes in the face of acute and chronic droughts that plagued the nation, solely due to the availability of some old Pongamia / karanj tree stands around those zones. Kranj oil has exhibited promise as a source of green energy.

Nevertheless, the research on improvement of Karanj and its management as a productive plantation is nebulous. It is heartening that the Monograph on Karanj by Dr. M.V.R. Prasad fills this void. Dr. Prasad has been pursuing the work on oil bearing perennial trees of which Pongamaia pinnata has been studied in greater detail during the decades starting from nineteen eighties to date. The Monograph describes clearly as to how Pongamia pinnata could be harnessed to exploit the proven and potential benefits cited above, in addition to giving valuable information on its genetic improvement and plantation management.

This Monograph on Pongomia will serve as a valuable reference book for the Agricultural Scientists, Extension workers, students as well as farmers.

M.V.R. Prasad represents the category of scientists, who are not confined exclusively to the narrow walls of their fields of specialization; but have grown to look at agricultural science as the integrated whole of diverse disciplines for sustainable progress of research. With his specialization in Genetics and Plant Breeding, Dr Prasad strived to work with a multidisciplinary approach to achieving solutions to crop production particularly in dryland-land Agriculture.Possessing over fifty years of experience at the national and international levels in the improvement of oilseed crops, grain legumes and tree species, he has contributed to the amelioration of dryland agriculture through development of crop varieties of groundnut, castor, mung bean, moth bean, guar (cluster beans), cashew nut and Pongamia.Among his research contributions, a particular mention may be made of the development and use of aerial pod-bearing attribute, a novel leaf mutant genotype with higher dry matter production and higher oleic acid content, and selection criteria for efficient groundnut breeding in addition tobreeding productive castor genotypes possessing wilt resistance for the first time in the country.

At the international level, Dr Prasad has worked as the International Crop Improvement Specialist and Visiting Professor of IICA (OAS) with EMBRAPA in Brazil. He also worked as the International Cashew Specialist and Technical Adviser of Af.D.B. and World Bank Projects on Cashew Development in Africa. He also participated at the FAO Regional Conference at Bangkok in 1991 and International Safflower Conference held in Beijing in 1993. He was the Leader of the Team constituted by the European Commission to assist the Mozambican Cashew Institute in the preparation of the plans for cashew development in 2007.

As the Director of the Directorate of Oilseeds Research (Currently Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research), his rich contributions to strengthening of oilseeds research and production are well known.
Dr Prasad has trained a number of scientists and post-graduate students ingenetics and breeding of oilseed crops in India and abroad. He possesses over 130 publications on oilseeds, grain legumes, and problems of dryland agriculture.

1.    Pongamia for Bioenergy and Better Environrment