While I stand at this coveted podium to deliver this prestigious ISAE Platinum Jubilee presidential address, my memory goes back to the great stalwarts who have earlier delivered many thoughtful presidential addresses from this podium over the last 74years. They were the sculptors par excellence and had provided every time a new jewel to bring us to this enviable destination. Each one of them had given his best masterstroke. Today, I remember many of them from almost 1974, the year in which I started participating in the conferences of the society. Each one of these stalwarts had put his heart in constructing every brick of this huge structure and I reminisce specifically Professors Dantwala, V.K.R.V. Rao, V.M. Dandekar, Nilkantha Rath, Vaidyanathan, V.M. Rao, M.V. Nadkarni, N.A. Mujumdar, S.S. Johl, Karam Singh, C. Ramasamy and many others. We did have influences from foreign groups and individuals, both in respect of academic disciplinesand matters of understanding Indian agriculture but we honoured them. The members of ISAE have contributed to the build of the society to a great extent and therefore I recollect what the father of our nation wrote about external influences. He said "I do not want my house to be walled-in on all sides and my windows to be stuffed. I wdnt the culture of all lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible. But I refuse to be blown off my feet by any of them ". I remain deeply influenced by this. I have no qualms to state that I am here today not because ofmy miniscule academic standing, I have no such hazy illusions, but I am here to bring that indigenous element vehemently in to our thinking. I am here only by default and this coveted position should have been occupied by someone out there who has slogged untiringly for elevating high the agricultural economists' profession of the country. On behalf of you all I bow with greatest respect to those stalwarts, past and present, and pay my respects to them, while thanking them profusely for their efforts.
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