The man who introduced crop-insurance for farmers

 

 

 

More than fifty years later, he still feels the emotional lump in the throat. At that unexpected hour of 4 in the morning as he alighted the train at a railway station in France, he found Professor Blanchet and his wife in heavy winter clothes to receive him, on the snow- covered platform. That very moment, the young Dr. Shivhari Kute found his guardian-angels in France as his mind darted back to his native village Hiwarkhed thousands of miles away in Buldana district in India -- where he had left behind his doting farmer parents who had made great sacrifices for him so that he could be educated. His mind also wandered to his wife and two daughters back home. Little did he know at that moment, however, that a few years later, he would be the man to introduce for the first time in the country the concept of crop-insurance for farmers, and help countless lakhs of farmers achieve higher productivity in agriculture. But there, in France, he had found a family of sorts.

 

There, he completed his second doctoral research and also got an advice of a lifetime -- go back to India and serve your motherland. ‘You don’t give up your mother because she is poor’, Prof Blanchet had said at the end of Dr. Kute’s immensely successful educational tenure in France. Enriched by that thought, Dr. Kute found a lucrative offer from the Government of Canada of no use to his mission -- of helping farmers of India to achieve greater productivity. ‘I will dedicate all my advanced knowledge of Agronomy to benefit the farmers of India’, Dr. Kute told himself as he headed back to India. He then never looked back. Now at 85 years of age, Dr. Kute, however, looks back on his satisfying life of high achievement. But at every big moment of his life, that 4 a.m. lump in the throat emerges back in memory. There were difficulties all right, he says. But there were blessings in bigger numbers as well -- as if Destiny was creating for him, a little son of a farmer’s family from a small village, all favourable factors. Destiny, then, took him around the globe to participate in scientific discourse, present scientific papers on agriculture, meet farmers from dozens of countries in all continents, and upon return to India help the farmers back home with latest knowledge of agriculture. One of the most prestigious opportunities came when Dr. Kute worked with the legendary Dr. M.S. Swaminathan (who was then the Director of the International Rice Research Institute) in Manila, Philipines.

 

That research assignment made a lot of difference to Dr. Kute personally and professionally “I was born in a farmer’s family, and I thought I must pursue agriculture studies. That won me many admirers as well”, Dr. Kute says now, his face shining bright with the recall of his life’s fulfilling moments. His eyes dance in bliss as he says that he could do what he wanted -- to be of help to Indian farmers. After his primary education in Hiwarkhed on the bank of river Khadakpurna, the little boy did his middle school studies at the taluka place Mehekar and then high school years in Buldana for high school years. Then , to pursue his dream of studying agriculture, Shivhari Kute proceeded to Sehor College of Agriculture near Bhopal for Bachelor’s degree in Vikram University. He completed his MSc in Agronomy standing first-class-first. Though he had limited means, his father proposed that he sought a doctoral degree. His guru -- Prof. Dakshindas -- and the then Maharashtra Chief Minister Mr. Vasantrao Naik also encouraged him to study on. So, Shivhari Kute gave up a job offer (with very small salary) and proceeded to New Delhi and joined the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) -- when his father could no longer support the studies. So, Shivhari Kute wrote a letter on a five-paise post-card to then Union Minister of Agriculture Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh (who was back in Amravati for electioneering).

 

The Minister wrote to his secretary in New Delhi to give the young man Rs 500 -- which lasted him for three months. Later, Dr. Deshmukh facilitated a scholarship from Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), which saw him through to acquire his first doctoral degree (PhD) in Agronomy. For a little boy from Hiwarkhed, that was a quantum jump, all right. Of course, something bigger, too, was waiting for him as Destiny’s gift. Some time later, as Dr. Shivhari Kute started working on some intermediate jobs, an opportunity rose for pursuing research in France on a six-month post-doctoral scholarship. The first three months were spent in studying French language -- when a research offer came to work with Prof. Blanchet. What could the young man do in just three remaining months? So, Dr. Blanchet showed the way -- Dr. Kute’s scholarship was extended thrice for a period of 6 months each time. And those two years, Dr. Kute’s work earned him his second PhD -- whose thesis and interview he gave in French. During those two years, he was the first author of a few scientific papers in which Prof. Blanchet was the second author. This work fetched him an invitation from the Government of Canada. He asked his guru what he should do, and the guru asked him to return to India. After a short stint at the Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertuilisers, Dr. Kute got selected for a scientific job in the GSFC -- where ultimately he rose to become the second-in-command, that is General Manager (Technical and Agro Services).

 

The work was satisfying because Dr. Shivhari Kute could touch the lives of lakhs of farmers not only in Gujarath but also elsewhere in the country. Presidents of India, several world class scientists and administrators acknowledged his contribution. And then came another offer -- to be the Vice Chancellor of an agricultural university. Dr. Shivhari Kute declined politely -- as his work was giving him enough of everything, material and spiritual. Yes, spiritual! That was one area that often beckoned Dr. Kute. So, upon retirement, spurning offers of lucrative professional engagements, he started working with the Swadhyay Parivar of Pandurangshastri Athawale ‘Dada’. Upon the advice of his spiritual guru, Dr. Kute travelled extensively in border districts of Punjab to spread the Swadhyay message, and got admired by people from all communities. That wonderful engagement, too, started when Dr. Kute was General Manager at GSFC where ‘Dada’ gave a lecture in which he highlighted the importance of doing something for the larger society. Life took another turn there. And on that path thereafter, Dr. Shivhari Kute is still marching on -- tirelessly. ///