Senior Associate - Crop Protection
ICRISAT invites applications from enthusiastic and motivated nationals for the role of Senior Associate within the Crop Protection & Seed Health cluster, part of the Global Research Program on Accelerated Crop Improvement. This position will be based at ICRISAT’s Headquarters in Patancheru, Hyderabad, India.
ICRISAT is a non-profit, non-political organization that conducts agricultural research for development in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa with a wide array of partners throughout the world. Covering 6.5 million square kilometers of land in 55 countries, the semi- arid or dryland tropics has over 2 billion people and 644 million of these are the poorest of the poor. ICRISAT and its partners help empower these disadvantaged populations to overcome poverty, hunger and a degraded environment through better agricultural production systems.
ICRISAT is headquartered at Patancheru near Hyderabad, India, with two regional hubs and eight country offices in sub-Saharan Africa. ICRISAT envisions a prosperous, food-secure and resilient dryland tropics. Its mission is to reduce poverty, hunger, malnutrition and environmental degradation in the dryland tropics. ICRISAT conducts research on its mandate crops of chickpea, pigeonpea, groundnut, sorghum, pearl millet and finger millet in the arid and semi-arid tropics. The Institute focuses its work on the drylands and in protecting the environment. Tropical dryland areas are usually seen as resource-poor and perennially beset by shocks such as drought, thereby trapping dryland communities in poverty and hunger and making them dependent on external aid. Please visit - www.icrisat.org
Responsibilities:
Assist in the planning, execution, and monitoring of laboratory, greenhouse, and field experiments related to major diseases affecting chickpea and pigeonpea.
Support seed processing activities and maintaining a systematic seed inventory for multi-location trials.
Perform routine laboratory, greenhouse, and field activities such as pathogen collection, media preparation, culture isolation, pathogen maintenance, and largescale inoculum production for disease screening experiments.
Support conduct greenhouse and field-based disease resistance screening of chickpea and pigeonpea materials.
Data collection and maintenance of research records to ensure accurate phenotyping and documentation.
Supervise and coordinate field labor activities, ensuring proper plot maintenance and trial management for high quality data generation.
Ensure compliance with biosafety, environmental, and health & safety guidelines in laboratory, greenhouse and fields.
Assist in host-pathogen interaction studies, epidemiological surveys, capacity building activities, demonstration and biocontrol research.
Contribute to research tasks as assigned by the supervisor.
Essential criteria:
A Degree or Diploma in Agriculture, Plant Sciences, Plant Pathology, or a related field is preferred.
A minimum of 2–3 years of experience in laboratory, greenhouse, and field-based research on plant diseases.
Hands-on experience in media preparation, inoculum production, pathogen isolation, culturing, and maintenance.
Familiarity with disease screening methods under greenhouse and field conditions; experience working with legume diseases is highly desirable.
Proficiency in data collection, knowledge of MS Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) and digital tools for data management.
Fluency in the local language, with good written and verbal communication skills in English.
Ability to assist in crop management and field trial supervision, including managing field labor.
Strong organizational and time management skills, with attention to detail in research activities.
Willingness to work in laboratory, greenhouse, and field conditions as required.
A valid driver’s license is preferred.
A team player with the ability to work effectively in a multicultural and interdisciplinary research environment.
General:
This is a contractual role for a period of 36 months (3 years), renewable based on the performance of the incumbent and the institute’s continuing need for the position.
How to apply:
Applicants should apply on or before 30-April-2025, with latest Curriculum Vitae and the names and contact information of three references that are knowledgeable about your professional qualifications and work experience. All applications will be acknowledged. However, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. The selection process will commence by 30 April 2025 until a suitable candidate is identified. Applicants should apply with their latest Resume, and the names and contact information of three references that are knowledgeable about their professional qualifications and work experience. All applications will be acknowledged; however, only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
ICRISAT is an equal opportunity employer