Mangina Venkateswara Rao (21 June 1928 – 8 March 2016) was an Indian agricultural scientist, plant breeder, and geneticist who was considered as one of the key figures in India’s Green Revolution.
[5][1] Rao was born on 21 June 1928 in a Kapu family[6] at Perupalem in West Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh.
[4] While holding the vice-chancellorship, he became associated with Agri Biotech Foundation (ABF - formerly known as Andhra Pradesh Netherlands Biotechnology Programme) as its chairman in 1995 and remained active there.
[7] Under his stewardship, the institute has developed several genetically modified seed varieties of cotton, sorghum, castor and red gram.
[11] He was a member of the task group which prepared guidelines for the formulation of the National Agricultural Technology Project (NATP), a World Bank project for the agricultural development in Bangladesh,[12] and sat on the NATP Scientific Advisory Panel on Coastal Eco System.
[11] He was a member of the board of the Intercultural Cooperation Foundation India (ICF) along with Arcot Ramachandran, a renowned Indian anthropologist.