The All India Coordinated Research Project on Oilseeds (AICRPO) was established in 1967 by the ICAR with the objective to control and coordinate the planning, funding and execution of research programme at multi-locations to develop the region specific technologies as well as to solve the problems of national importance. The main aim of this programme was to have a systematic research programmes to augment the production and productivity of oilseeds in the country. Sunflower crop was brought under the umbrella of All India Coordinated Research Project on Oilseeds in 1972.The research was initiated at five centres viz., Bangalore, Coimbatore, Digraj, Akola and Kota. Initially, the AICRP on sunflower was co-ordinated by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. As coordinating and monitoring of the entire project by one Project Coordinator located at IARI became difficult, one Associate Project Coordinator’s position for sunflower was created in the V Plan to assist the Project Coordinator.
Later in VI Plan, the Project Co-ordinating unit of Sunflower was shifted to Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore and further, it was shifted to University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. The then existing Associate Project Coordinator’s position of sunflower was upgraded as Project Coordinator (Sunflower). Due to vast expansion of oilseeds research and the non-existence of one apex Institute at national level to take leadership in oilseeds research, guided the policy makers to establish the Directorate of Oilseeds Research (DOR) in August, 1977. This Directorate located at Hyderabad and headed by Project Director was assisted by the Project Coordinator (Sunflower) to plan, monitor and coordinate the research programmes.
During IX Plan, as per the recommendations of Dr. H.K. Jain, Committee, the post of Project Coordinator (Sunflower) was abolished and the responsibility for coordination was entrusted to the Director, Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research (Formerly DOR) With effect from 01.07.2001.