Padma Shri Awardee And Traditional Paddy Conservationist Cheruvayal Raman Passes Away
· India · The Hindu, Indian Express
Renowned conservationist of traditional paddy seeds Cheruvayal Raman passed away at the age of 74 on Wednesday while undergoing treatment for age-related ailments at Kozhikode Medical College hospital. A native of Kammana in Edavaka, Wayanad, Raman was widely known as Nellachan for preserving indigenous rice varieties like Kunnumkulamban, Peruvaka, Kuthicheera, and Kunkumasali. He managed his family's agricultural land from the age of 17 and distributed seeds to farmers without charging any money. Over his lifetime, he represented Kerala's agricultural community at international biodiversity conferences across 11 countries, including a United Nations conference in Hyderabad and a seminar in Brazil. His conservation work earned him the Plant Genome Savior Award, the Padma Shri in 2023, and the Oommen Chandy Memorial Award.
Why it matters
The death of Padma Shri recipient Cheruvayal Raman marks the loss of a pioneering guardian of India's indigenous agrobiodiversity and traditional farming knowledge.
Read the original report — The Hindu
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