TNAU students gain insights into genotyping, data-driven crop improvement

Undergraduate and postgraduate students of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) gained insights into the shifting demand for skills, particularly in high-throughput genotyping and data-driven crop improvement, at the end of a day-long programme conducted as part of its Professor of Practice Lecture Series, recently.

The Global Biotech Lead for Series on Plant Breeding Innovations conducted at the Department of Plant Biotechnology, featured Karunakaran Maruthachalam from Corteva Agriscience, speaking on ‘Innovations that Reshaped Plant Breeding’.

Elaborating on what modern agricultural companies look for in new workforce, Mr. Karunakaran, who leads Global Genotyping for India, China, and South Africa, interacted with students and faculty, providing a multinational industrial perspective.

This interaction, according to the TNAU faculty, enabled the students to understand how their lab work translates to careers in industrial plant breeding. The event aligned the students’ academic training with the specific, practical needs of the current ag-tech market, a TNAU press release said.

The critical need for deeper research collaboration between public universities and private industry was also underscored by speakers, N. Senthil, Director of Centre for Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, said.

The discussion, Department Head E. Kokiladevi, added, laid the groundwork for future synergies for the university to leverage industrial-grade technologies while offering industry partners access to its diverse germplasm.

By bringing in experts who manage operations across multiple continents, the university was actively modernising its breeding strategies and ensuring its research output stays relevant on a global scale, the release said.