The M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) in Taramani was set up in 1988 with the money from the first World Food Prize, which its founder, the agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan, received in 1987. The foundation’s history page and founder page record both facts. Nearly four decades on, it runs farm, nutrition, coastal and biodiversity programmes from its Chennai headquarters and a network of field sites across five states.
It is a non-profit trust, not a government lab, which is why its work shows up in villages rather than in tender notices. Here is what it does, where, and how Chennai residents can engage with it.
Who runs it now
The Board of Trustees is chaired by Dr Soumya Swaminathan, according to the trustees page. The board includes a former Biotechnology Department secretary, academics from IIM Bangalore and IIHS, and Mindtree co-founder Subroto Bagchi. The centres page lists Dr R. Rengalakshmi as Executive Director.
Swaminathan was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 2024; the Prime Minister announced the honour on 9 February 2024, PMO records show. The founder page lists his earlier roles as Director General of ICAR and of the International Rice Research Institute, independent chairman of the FAO Council from 1981 to 1985, and president of the IUCN from 1984 to 1990.
Four programme areas
The home page groups the work under nutrition and health, agri-food systems, biodiversity management, and coastal and marine systems, with climate resilience, gender, institution building and technology (biotechnology, ecotechnology, GIS and AI) running across all four. It claims to have reached about 5,500 villages and 6.45 lakh households in 15 states. These are the foundation’s own figures and have not been independently audited.
Coastal and fisheries work
For a coastal state the marine programme, running since 1990, is the most visible. The foundation’s coastal and marine page reports:
- more than 3,500 hectares of mangroves restored across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra and Kerala
- about 1.22 lakh fishers connected to the Fisher Friend Mobile Application, which sends weather, ocean-state and market information
- over 30,000 kg of marine debris, including abandoned fishing gear, removed with fishing communities in the Gulf of Mannar
- 6,000 fisherwomen trained under a women’s connectivity programme, and HACCP-certified fish processing units that it says add ₹3,000 to ₹5,000 a month to members’ incomes
Its Fish For All Research and Training Centre at Tsunami Nagar, Poompuhar, in Mayiladuthurai district, trains coastal families in sustainable fishing, safe handling and value addition. Another project works on ocean-state forecasts and fishery advisories for the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast.
Field sites in Tamil Nadu
| Site | Type | District |
|---|---|---|
| Taramani, Chennai | Headquarters | Chennai |
| Poompuhar | Fish For All Research and Training Centre | Mayiladuthurai |
| Semmedu, Kolli Hills | Eastern Ghats Biodiversity Centre | Namakkal |
| Pudukkottai | Village Resource Centre | Pudukkottai |
| Thiruvaiyaru | Village Resource Centre | Thanjavur |
| Rameswaram | Village Resource Centre | Ramanathapuram |
| Vedaranyam | Field site | Nagapattinam |
Other Tamil Nadu field sites include Villupuram, Theni and Kannivadi in Dindigul, with a Bio Village Resource Centre in Puducherry. Outside the state, it has a Community Agrobiodiversity Centre at Meppadi in Wayanad, Kerala, and a Tribal Agrobiodiversity Centre near Jeypore in Odisha’s Koraput district.
Visiting and getting involved
The Taramani headquarters is at 3rd Cross Street, Institutional Area, Taramani, Chennai 600113. Phone 044-22541229 or 22542699, or email contact@mssrf.res.in. It is a working research campus, so arrange visits, internships or volunteer work by writing ahead. Students in agriculture, nutrition, social science and GIS are the most common interns. Donations are accepted through the website, and the foundation lists more than 100 donor organisations.
Other coastal projects
Beyond mangroves, the coastal page lists blue carbon and integrated aquaculture work in Palk Bay, ghost-gear and debris recovery clusters at Sundaramudaiyar, Keezhakarai and Thoothukudi in the Gulf of Mannar, education and livelihood support for Irular tribal families in Parangipettai block of Cuddalore district, and fish farmer producer organisations along the Puducherry coast. The foundation reports that about three lakh farmers, fishers and tribal people have improved their livelihoods through its programmes.
For Chennai readers, the most direct link is the fisher information work: the same ocean-state and weather advisories that reach fishing villages along the Coromandel coast are relevant to the city’s own fishing hamlets during the northeast monsoon. Fishers who are not yet on the app can ask the foundation’s Chennai office how to sign up. Teachers and researchers who want to study coastal livelihoods can also ask about access to the foundation’s field reports, many of which are published on its website.
Quick answers
When was MSSRF founded?
In 1988, by M.S. Swaminathan, using proceeds of the first World Food Prize.
Who heads MSSRF?
Dr Soumya Swaminathan chairs the Board of Trustees; Dr R. Rengalakshmi is Executive Director.
Is MSSRF a government institute?
No. It is a non-profit research foundation that partners with government agencies.
What is the Fisher Friend app?
An MSSRF app sending weather, sea-state and market alerts to about 1.22 lakh fishers.
Information checked against official sources on 18 October 2026. Fees, dates and rules can change; confirm on the linked official pages before acting.
