International Conference IASCSI 2025 organised at IIT Ropar

Bahadurjeet Singh/Rupnagar,January 31,2025

IIT Ropar Technology and Innovation Foundation (TIF), Agriculture and Water Technology Development Hub (AWaDH) successfully hosted the Integrated Approaches for Sustainable Crop Science Innovation (IASCSI) International conference in collaboration with the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute and was supported through the Shastri Conference Grant. The event also involved academic partners such as Dalhousie University, Canada, Indian Council of Agricultural Research ICAR, New Delhi and other leading institutions dedicated to advancing agricultural practices. This landmark event brought together global experts, researchers, policymakers, and industry leaders to discuss and promote innovative strategies aimed at revolutionizing crop science.

The conference began with a Welcome Address delivered by Dr. Radhika Trikha, CEO AWaDH along with Dr. Shreya Sharma, R&D and Corporate Manager AWaDH who welcomed the dignitaries and participants. The event was graced by Chief Guest Dr. Anil Agrawal, Chancellor of HRIT University, who emphasized the importance of grassroots engagement to ensure that innovations and policies directly benefit farmers. Dr. Tarun Shridhar, Director General of ICFA and a retired IAS officer, attended as the Guest of Honor, Sharing how agriculture in India has evolved from traditional practices to modern technology-driven methods, emphasizing the need for sustainability to ensure food security and long-term productivity.

Throughout the event, Dr. Balakrishnan Prithiviraj, Assistant Vice-President for Global Relations at Dalhousie University, Canada, underscored the importance of international partnerships in promoting sustainable practices and shared insights on strengthening collaboration between researchers from India and Canada. Other notable speakers included Anju Taneja, a representative of the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute, who participated virtually. The keynote session was delivered online by Dr. Ahmad Al-Mallahi, Industry Research Chair and Associate Professor, Precision Agriculture at Dalhousie University, who provided a global perspective on precision agricultural practices, the need for R&D-based modularization, scalability, and standardization to drive sustainable growth in the sector.

The conference also featured two dynamic panel discussions. The first, titled “Revolutionizing Agriculture: Crop Science’s Perspective on Integrated Technological Advancements,”was moderated by Taranjeet, CEO and Founder of Agnext. Esteemed panelists, including Dr. V. Geethalakshmi, Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Dr. R. S. Sethi, Professor and Additional Director of Research at GADVASU Ludhiana, Prof. Athula Ginige, Professor at Western Sydney University, Dr. Sonil Nanda, Assistant Professor and Canada Research Chair in Clean Agricultural Technology at Dalhousie University, Shivdeep Brar, CEO of AgVisi Technologies, and Shubham Barik, Assistant Manager at Grant Thornton Bharat LLP, engaged in a lively discussion on how integrated technology can reshape agriculture. Dr. Gurpreet Singh, Assistant Professor specializing in Nanotechnology Research at Dalhousie University, Canada, also contributed to the discussion through a recorded session.

he second panel discussion, “From Farm to Table: Crop Science and Government Policies for Sustainable Agriculture & Business Opportunities,” was chaired by Dr. Subash N. Pillai, Head of the Division of Agricultural Physics at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, and moderated by Neha Arora COO, PI- RAHI. The discussion featured Dr. Pratap Kumar Pati, Professor and Head at Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Dr. Alka Arora, Principal Scientist and Professor, Dr. Amaresh Panda, Lead at KIIT-TBI TTO, Dr. Opinder Singh Sandhu, Scientist in Soils at Punjab Agricultural University, and Dr. Sumit Kaushik, Senior Account Director at Avian WE. The panelists explored the synergy between crop science, government policies, and business innovations to achieve sustainability.

To promote research and innovation, the conference included Theme-Based Presentations with participants showcasing their work through posters and online oral presentations. These sessions were evaluated by a distinguished jury comprising experts such as Saurabh Arora , Dr. P.K. Pati, and Dr. R.S. Sethi for poster presentations, and Dr. Subash N. Pillai, Dr. Amaresh Panda, and Neha Arora for oral presentations. The best presenters were recognized and awarded prizes, encouraging excellence and creativity in addressing key agricultural challenges.

The IASCSI conference highlighted IIT Ropar TIF AWaDH’s determination to tackle important agricultural challenges. It focused on using new technologies, smart policies, and international teamwork to promote sustainable farming practices and secure food for the future, especially in the face of global challenges.