Padma Shri awardee Subbanna Ayyappan dies under mysterious circumstances

Agricultural (fisheries) scientist, who served as director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), and Padma Shri awardee Subbanna Ayyappan (70) has died under mysterious circumstances. His decomposed body was found in the River Cauvery in Srirangapatna of Mandya district, on Saturday. He is survived by his wife and two daughters.

“He resided on Akkamahadevi Road in Vishveshwara Nagar Industrial Area of Mysuru. His scooter was found on the riverbank. Preliminary information suggest that he jumped into the river near Saibaba Ashram in Srirangapatna, three days ago,” police said.

“His family members had complained at Vidyaranyapuram Police Station in Mysuru, three days ago, that he went missing after leaving home. The body was shifted to KR Hospital in Mysuru for post-mortem. The exact cause for his death is not yet known,” police added.

“Subbanna Ayyappan used to go to Sri Ramakrishna Ashram in Mysuru and on the banks of the Cauvery River in Srirangapatna, for meditation. Unfortunately, his body was found in the river,” said his relative and advocate Srinidhi.

Subbanna Ayyappan was an agriculture and fisheries (aquaculture) scientist, who worked in Delhi, Mumbai, Bhopal, Barrackpore, Bhubaneswar and Bengaluru. He was the first non-crop scientist to head the ICAR. He served as Director of Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA), Bhubaneswar; as director of Central Institute of Fisheries Education (CIFE), Mumbai; as secretary of Union Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE); as founder chief executive of National Fisheries Development Board, Hyderabad; and as chairman of National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories.

Subbanna Ayyappan played a major role in India’s ‘Blue Revolution’ and was awarded Padma Shri in 2022. Besides being active in agricultural research, he built and nurtured various institutions. He served as the vice-chancellor of the Central Agricultural University (CAU) in Imphal.

Born on December 10, 1955, he was a native of Yalandur in Chamarajanagar district. He did his Bachelor of Fisheries Science (BFSc – 1975) and Master of Fisheries Science (MFSc – 1977) in Mangaluru. He obtained his PhD degree from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru, in 1998. He chaired several committees and was a recipient of numerous awards.