SKUAST Jammu hosts Guest Lecture on “Advanced Anti-Microbial Nanomaterials for Crop Protection”

Jammu : NAHEP-IDP SKUAST-Jammu, under the guidance of Prof. J P Sharma, Vice Chancellor, on Tuesday organized a Guest Lecture for the students and Faculty members on “Advanced Anti-Microbial Nanomaterials for Crop Protection”.
The lecture was delivered by Dr. Swadeshmukul Santra, Prof. NanoScience Technology Center & Director, Materials Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture (UCF-MISA Center), University of Central Florida, USA. In his lecture, Prof. Santra gave an overview of the challenges of the new millennium especially with regard to sustainable agriculture and global food security. He further highlighted the role of nanotechnology in increasing agricultural productivity through development of improved fertilizer and pesticide formulations, efficient delivery and monitoring plant needs for smart fertilization, irrigation and disease control. In his talk Prof. Santra also drew comparison between nano and traditional fertilizers and uptake and movement of nanomaterial in plant systems. Finally, he discussed the role of nanotechnology in crop protection citing case studies from his lab.
After the lecture, Dr. Santra interacted with the Head of Divisions, Faculty members and students. Prof. Santra also called on Vice Chancellor, Prof. J. P. Sharma and discussed issues of mutual interest for future collaboration. The lecture was convened by Prof. A. K. Mondal, Dean, Faculty of Agriculture and coordinated by Prof. Sanjay Guleria, Head, Division of Biochemistry. The lecture was attended by faculty members and students. Prof. R. K. Salgotra, Coordinator School of Biotechnology, presented the vote-of-thanks.