Our team received a wonderful opportunity to interview the author of ‘Stress In Plant: The Hidden Half’, Dr. Rishikesh Upadhyay. He has written many Non-fictional articles, scientific articles short stories, children’s stories. He is currently an assistant professor at Assam University affiliated college.

INTERVIEWER: Your book covers a wide range of scientific disciplines. What inspired you to write a comprehensive book on plant stress, and how did you manage to balance so many complex areas in one volume?

RISHIKESH: Well, writing, doing research works in the laboratory, and teaching make me feel more alive, deeply experience things, and be able to tell my thoughts/research/stories to the world. I’ve always been fascinated by writing articles, book chapters, poems, children’s, teaching and research from my post MSc onwards. It’s not possible to say where inspiration comes from? Well, that is largely a mystery. Simply, I just love to learn, write, and teach. From there, it just took shape. And, Stress in Plants: The Hidden Half is a collaborative work with different writers or authors in this specific field.

INTERVIEWER: Plant stress is a topic that has gained more attention in recent years, particularly with the onset of climate change. How do you see this field evolving in the next decade?

RISHIKESH: Exactly! Since plants are sessile in nature, so they relentlessly and inherently encounter harsh or stress environments inclusive of physical and chemical factors which are unfriendly to them and limit their productivity, experiencing severe agricultural yields. So, by understanding both the negative and positive impacts of stress responses, including genome instability, we can provide insights into how plants react to different levels of stress, yielding more accurate forecasts of their behavior in the natural environment.

INTERVIEWER: What do you think are the most significant challenges we face today in terms of mitigating plant stress and ensuring sustainable crop production?

RISHIKESH: There are many. Actually, it depends on the types of plants stressed. Few could be the alteration of planting time, by seed priming, foliar nutrients application, the application of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus, etc.

INTERVIEWER: Your book highlights how plant stress can affect agricultural productivity. What role do you believe technology, such as biotechnology and AI, will play in addressing these challenges?

RISHIKESH: Biotechnology and artificial intelligence play a good role here. These can help with many global problems and contribute to important sustainability. AI can be used to analyze data on the presence and spread of diseases, pests in forests or vegetation, as well as to predict their probable impact on the health and output of plants or trees. This can help to identify areas that are at risk and to implement defensive measures to protect plants or forests. It helps quick plant production regardless of season, development of heat stress, drought stress, salinity tolerance, disease-resistant crops or plants, etc. However, in the biotechnology field, it helps in accelerating drug discovery, providing advanced analytics, detailed medical diagnostics, gene editing, personalized medicine development, and other aids to benefit humanity.

INTERVIEWER: In writing this book, did you discover any surprising or unexpected findings about plant behavior under stress?

RISHIKESH: Nice Question! Yes, plants respond to their environment with a similar combination of chemical and electrical responses to animals, but through machinery that is specific to plants. They can also perceive sound, mobile radiation, magnetic field, electromagnetic, etc.

INTERVIEWER: You’ve spent a significant part of your career in academia and research. How has your experience as a professor influenced the way you approach writing scientific books like Stress in Plants?

RISHIKESH: Absolutely, I just want to keep my teaching or educational background separate from my writing career. From my Post MSc onwards I was keen in writing besides my research works. As you know it’s very hard to get yourself or anyone back in that zone of thinking about the imaginative world or idea that’s in your mind. During the day, I go to a teaching job that I love, and by night I pour my imagination and ideas out onto a page. I believe in and write.

INTERVIEWER: Your book is aimed at a diverse audience, including scientists, students, and policymakers. What do you hope each of these groups will take away from reading Stress in Plants?

RISHIKESH: Well, I want something that educates others too, and better yet, teaches us something good. ‘Stress in Plants’ is about to consolidate the ideas to promote standardization of plant response and adaptation to stress environments. This book is different from others in that it may give hope to a situation. It may resolves to issues related to plants and their surrounding environments to some extent.

INTERVIEWER: What are some practical strategies that you would recommend for farmers and agricultural scientists to combat plant stress in the field?

RISHIKESH: Yes, few could be considered here. Climate change is no longer an unfriendly threat – it is a reality that farmers around the world are struggling with daily. Rise in temperatures, unpredictable weather patterns, increased pest and disease pressure and shifting rainfall patterns have made agriculture more challenging than ever. Our farmers are representing unresolved flexibility and adaptability in the face of the uncertainty brought about by environmental or climate change. The application of amino acids, sugars, secondary metabolites, or artificial compounds to crops is easy to implement in the short term and it has been recognized to be an effective way to upsurge plant tolerance to many stresses, either in biotic or abiotic conditions. Some biological treatments, including immunizing plants with beneficial microorganisms, improving enzymatic antioxidant ability, encouraging the solubilization of inorganic phosphate, and supporting root and plant growth, result in improved plant performance under different environmental stress situations. The application of microbes and organic compounds are among the bio-stimulants used to counteract the damaging effects of adverse environmental stresses. The high-yielding seed genetics and trait packages tend to require more thorough management to increase their yield potential. We can also consider applying seed treatment methods sometimes. The uses of stress-tolerant varieties in field situations are more useful techniques too. They require fewer herbicides or fertilizers and are more resistant to stress. As climate change, pollution, and habitat loss increasingly stress plants, understanding how they respond to these challenges can lead to improved crop resilience, better management practices, and insights for conservation efforts. Therefore, growing crops that are more resistant to temperature helps farmers mitigate the impact of global warming on crop production and yields. Improving yield stability and minimizing susceptibility to environmental stress can be attained through climate-smart agriculture practices like the selective breeding of crop varieties with features appropriate to the particular environment. Also, knowing the temperature regime and the amount of rainfall in your region can help you determine which crops will flourish in that particular place.

INTERVIEWER: Lastly, you’ve written across a variety of genres, from scientific articles to poems and short stories. How do these different writing experiences influence each other, and how do you balance them?

RISHIKESH: This is a good question! I find it challenging to balance writing works with my teaching life. Genuine writing is so powerful. It can change someone’s life. I am always inclined towards producing quality content that would help the readers in particular and students, from my post MSc onwards. I find teaching satisfying and sufficient because the focus is on classroom teaching – on helping people – instead of on producing research only. And, I usually write based on research about my own experiences. Now, I’ve been interested in the blend of non-fiction, children, and poems. These genres allow me to explore deep human emotions, research and experiences. Writing in these genres bounces me the freedom to create intricate, magical worlds and explore the intricacies of human relationships, natural environments and personal growth. The best stories have something to say. That’s important to me.

Author Bio :

Dr. Rishikesh Upadhyay was born, grew up and lives in Bhanjang Basti, Haflong, a small Nepalis’ hamlet in the district headquarters of NC Hills (now Dima Hasao), India. He is an Indian writer and professor, best known for his writings and teaching. He writes articles, nonfiction titles, scientific articles, book chapters, poems, children’s, short stories, etc. He holds a BSc Hons from Haflong government college, an MSc, MPhil and a PhD from Assam University, Silchar. He has spent the past decade working and teaching in higher educational institutions. His works have appeared, quoted and cited in several international journals and books of repute.

Dr. Upadhyay is currently a professor (assistant) at Assam University affiliated Haflong Government College, India.

You can find him online at Google Scholar and Linkedin.
Google Scholar https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=h232zIsAAAAJ
Linkedin https://in.linkedin.com/in/rishikesh-upadhyay-814a8a1a