Dr. Simon Heck, Director General of the International Potato Centre (CIP), Lima, Peru, visited the ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI), Shimla, on July 30, 2025, as part of his official tour to India. He was accompanied by Dr. Neeraj Sharma, Country Manager for CIP-India. The visit marks a significant milestone toward strengthening collaborative research and development initiatives in potato science and innovation between CIP and ICAR-CPRI, ShimlaDr. Heck was warmly welcomed by Dr. Brajesh Singh, Director, ICAR-CPRI, along with senior officials of the Institute. A comprehensive interaction was held with multidisciplinary teams from various divisions including Crop Improvement, Crop Protection, Crop Production, Seed Technology, Social Sciences, and Post-Harvest Technologies. Dr Brajesh Singh, Director, Dr Jagdev Sharma, Dr Sanjeev Sharma, Dr Alok Kumar, Dr Vinod Kumar, Dr Som Dutt, Dr Ashwini Sharma, and Dr Salej Sood were represented from CPRI Shimla during interaction and fruitful discussion in the field of potato science and innovation. The discussions were centred around identifying key areas for future collaboration such as joint research programmes, technology transfer, and policy-level alignment aimed at addressing global challenges related to potato germ plasm, productivity, climate resilience, capacity building programme and sustainable agri-food systems.
Dr. Heck acknowledged the significant contributions of ICAR-CPRI to potato research in India and highlighted CIP’s expectation of support from CPRI to its newly established South Asia-based Centre at Agra, Uttar Pradesh, particularly in the domains of research and development. The International Potato Centre (CIP), headquartered in Lima, Peru, is a global research institution under the CGIAR system that focuses on potato, sweet potato, and Andean roots and tubers. The visit concluded with a tour of the CPRI campus and an overview of ongoing research activities. Dr. Heck and his team expressed appreciation for the fruitful exchange of ideas before departing Shimla
