My science career began with a passion for improving lives of women farmers, especially in the developing world. These women perform their dual roles as mothers and farmers, while struggling with malnutrition and poverty.
As a scientist in India, I worked on Rockefeller Rice Biotechnology program and generated India’s first insect-resistant transgenic rice, conducting one of the first public sector GM field trials in India.
In April 2000, I moved to Toowoomba in Australia and developed frost-tolerant GM wheat for frost-impacted regions of the world, a program funded by the GRDC, Australia.

In 2002, I joined QUT, Brisbane and have led several research projects since then, mainly focussed on developing leading-edge transformation technologies for difficult crop plants like, sugarcane, soybean and banana.
My current assignment, starting in 2005, placed me right in the middle of where my heart was and I took an active role in leading a major international research program, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded Grand Challenges in Global Health program to develop nutritionally biofortified and disease resistant bananas for resource poor farmers in Africa. It is a multinational research program with researchers from Australia, Uganda, USA and Mexico and has expanded into India this year .

The biggest achievement of the program has been the development of high provitaminA GM banana lines that I have personally generated as part of technology development in Australia and also in Africa where I have trained and mentored young students and scientists to generate GM banana using their own varieties and we are now doing field trials in Australia and Africa.

I played a key role in developing scientific collaboration in agricultural biotechnology between Queensland Government and Department of Biotechnology, India. This collaboration has provided an opportunity to leverage research funds and capacity with India in shared priority areas including medical and agricultural biotechnology, climate change science and renewable energy technologies.

I have seen students and researchers struggle for small things like laboratory glassware, identification labels, tapes etc. that we take for granted and just order and receive the next day. I have carried a lot of material with me to Africa and everytime I go to Africa, I take things with me in my baggage. I have seen just small things make a huge difference. Bill Gates is doing his large bit but if I can do my small bit, it will also matter. So I would like to use that money for buying some laboratory consumables that I know they need.