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Green Revolution is a term coined to describe the emergence and diffusion of new seeds of cereals. Norman-e-Burlaug is the Father of Green Revolution in the world, w hile Dr. M.S. Swaminathan is known as the Father of Green Revolution in India.The new cereals were the product of research work and concentrated plant breeding with the objective of creating High Yielding Varieties (HYVs) of use to the developing countries. New varieties of wheat were first bred in Mexico in the 1950s and that of rice, like IR-8 (miracle rice) at the International Rice Research Institute, Manila, (Philippines in the 1960s). The increase in the yield from the new seeds has been spectacular as during the last forty years, agricultural production, particularly of wheat and rice, has experienced a great spurt and tbis has been designated as the Green Revolution.
The Green Revolution has been used to mean two different tilings. Some experts of agriculture use it for referring to a broad transformation of agricultural sector in the developing countries to reduce food shortages. Others use it when referring to the specific plant improvements, notably the development of HYVs. Whatsoever the meaning of Green Revolution may be taken as, the adoption and diffusion of new seeds of w'heat and rice has been considered as a significant achievement as it offered great optimism. In fact, these varieties of seeds have revolutionised the agricultural landscape of the developing-countries and the problem of food shortage has been reduced.
In India, hybridisation of selected crops, i.e. maize, bajra (bulrush millets), and millets began in 1960. The Mexican dwarf varieties of wheat were tried out on a selected scale in 1963-64. Exotic. varieties of rice such as Taichung Native I were introduced in India in 1964. The diffusion of IIYVs, however, became fully operational in the country in the Kharif season of 1965-66. The diffusion of the new seeds was mainly in the Satluj-Ganga Plains and the Kaveri Delta.
Subsequently, a number of varieties of wheat and rice were developed by the Indian scientists and adopted by the Indian farmers.