The Indian Society of Plant Genetic Resources (ISPGR) was founded in 1987 as a multidisciplinary scientific body involved in the various issues of plant genetic resources (PGR) and related fields. It currently has >850 members, nearly 800 of them being life members. The ISPGR was formally registered under the Indian Societies Act (1860) on November 3, 1987 with the Registrar of Societies, Delhi (Registration No. S/18336 of 1987). Membership is open to all persons interested in the field of PGR in India and abroad.

Genesis

The genesis of the society was from the initiative taken by the scientists at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi, under the leadership of Dr R.S. Paroda, the then Director of NBPGR and presently Chairman, Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS). A ‘National Symposium on Plant Genetic Resources’ was organized by the NBPGR, on March 3-6, 1987 to commemorate completion of adecade of NBPGR’s establishment. The symposium was attended by 300 scientists from India and20 from abroad, including those from International Centres like International Rice Research Institute(IRRI), Philippines, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), Mexico andInternational Centre for Research in Semi-arid Tropics (ICRISAT), India. During the symposium, DrR.S. Paroda proposed the creation of ISPGR, which was welcomedby all the delegates of the symposium. TheConstitution of ISPGR was drafted under which the General Body (GB) comprising all members ofthe Society was designated the supreme authority and elected an Executive Council (EC) biannuallyfor management of all the activities. The Constitution was revised in 2007 and since then EC tenurehas been changed to three years.