The Hindu Business Line : Icrisat posts turnaround performance

THE International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (Icrisat), which had undergone a financial slump in the late 1990s, has reported $500,000 surplus budget last fiscal. Donors are stated to be once again putting their trust and money in the institute.

Icrisat now stands second among the 15 centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) in terms of financial health indicators. Strategic finance has ensured that Icrisat's mission is achieved by aligning its strategies around research. In addition, it has explored avenues for generating income, such as seed multiplication, biomasss production and development of fruit orchards, Icrisat stated in a press release here on Thursday.

Meanwhile, its Director-General, Dr William Dar, has been given a new five-year term of office, starting January 1, 2005. The institute is now more outward looking. It has established partnerships with the private sector such as the Tata Trust, Sehgal Foundation. The Institute has ties with the Government of India via the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Several joint and collaborative research projects have been developed. Bilateral funding from ICAR and the Government of Andhra Pradesh increased significantly during the period.

Icrisat, the press release stated, has 23 new partnership projects with ICAR for 2000-04 in the areas of genetic resources, crop improvement, natural resource management, socioeconomics and policy and sharing of information resources. Since the year 2000, institute has been the recipient of 46 awards.

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