Dilbagh Singh Athwal facts for kids

Dilbagh Singh Athwal (born 1928, died 2017) was an important Indian scientist. He was a geneticist, which means he studied how plants inherit traits. He was also a plant breeder, someone who develops new and better types of plants. He was a pioneer in this field.

Athwal used to be a professor and head of the plant breeding department at Punjab Agricultural University. He worked closely with Norman Borlaug, a very famous biologist who won the Nobel Prize. Together, they helped bring in new types of wheat that grew much more grain. These were called "dwarf varieties" because they were shorter.

Athwal is often called the Father of the Wheat Revolution in India. This is because he played a huge part in making India grow a lot more wheat. He helped create important wheat types like 'PV 18' in 1966 and 'Kalyansona' in 1967. 'Kalyansona' became very popular.

Later, in 1967, he joined the International Rice Research Institute. He became the first deputy director general of this important institute.

Athwal passed away on May 14, 2017, at his home in Princeton, New Jersey. He was 88 years old.