Dr Vetriventhan Mani is a Genetic Resources Scientist at ICRISAT's Genebank in Hyderabad, India. He earned his Ph.D. in Plant Breeding and Genetics from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), India. With an extensive background spanning approximately 11 years, he specializes in plant genetic resources, mainly focusing on conserving germplasm for eight dryland millets, namely sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet, foxtail millet, proso millet, barnyard millet, kodo millet, and little millet.
Dr Vetriventhan's primary focus revolves around strategizing and conducting germplasm research to enhance the efficiency of conserving and utilizing this valuable collection. Dr Vetriventhan's essential tasks encompass a range of activities, such as running gap analysis, acquiring new germplasm, characterizing varieties, regenerating specimens, and performing phenotypic and genomic assessments of the germplasm. Additionally, Dr Vetriventhan evaluates the diversity within and among accessions, studies population genetics, and assesses germplasm for factors like yield, grain nutrients, and stress tolerance. Dr Vetriventhan's contributions extend to developing subsets of germplasm with specific traits and diversities.
Before joining ICRISAT, Dr Vetriventhan worked as a Scientist (Plant Breeding) at the Directorate of Seed Research, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in Uttar Pradesh, India, where Dr Vetriventhan gained invaluable experience over approximately two years.
Dr Vetriventhan has authored over 100 publications, encompassing research papers, reviews, and book chapters. Furthermore, Dr Vetriventhan has guided the academic journey of seven MSc and five Ph.D. students and supervised several interns.