Would Have Been Happier Had Bharat Ratna Bestowed 6 Months Ago: MS Swaminathan's Daughter Soumya

Soumya Swaminathan has remarked that she would have been much happier had the Bharat Ratna been conferred on her late father MS Swaminathan six months or a year ago. Recently, the Narendra Modi government bestowed the Bharat Ratna on MS Swaminathan and four others.

Hyderabad/New Delhi:The Narendra Modi-led government recently honoured well-known agricultural scientist late Prof M S Swaminathan with Bharat Ratna, country's highest civilian honour, for his contribution in agricultural field.

However his daughter Soumya Swaminathan said that she would have been much happier had the honour been bestowed on her late father six months or an year ago. MS Swaminathan passed away on September 28, 2023 in Chennai at the age of 98.

Addressing a function where ICAR celebrated the conferment of Bharat Ratna to late MS Swaminathan through video conferencing, Soumya Swaminathan said, "When I was asked for my reactions, you know the day that he received the Bharat Ratna of course, you know, for my sisters and me, it would have been a much much happier (moment)..."

"Much much happier moment if it had come, you know, six months or a year ago. So we could not... that is our feeling... obviously as we could have seen him also, get the joy in you know that all of us feel today with this announcement. But as the reaction that I had given to the media was really that he did not anticipate or expect or work for awards and prizes. I mean many came, of course," Soumya added.

Soumya Swaminathan said her late father "got so many honors from so many parts of the world".

"But his goal was on a mission and the satisfaction was from seeing the results of the work happen on the ground whether it was a policy or whether it was a law whether it was creation of a National Institute or whether it was actually seeing a farmer's family, you know, getting the benefits of that work.

"So I think those were the rewards and he would have been extremely delighted that the country recognised him with the Bharat Ratna and I'm sure that you know, he's he's very happy where he is at peace" she added.

Recently, senior journalist N Ram had said MS Swaminathan became a global figure after his contributions helped avert a great famine on a global scale, while he served as the head of the International Rice Institute and he should have gotten the Bharat Ratna when he was alive.

Apart from MS Swaminathan, the Centre announced Bharat Ratna to former Bihar Chief Minister late Karpoori Thakur, BJP stalwart LK Advani and former Prime Ministers late Chaudhary Charan Singh and late PV Narasimha Rao.