Improvement of Traditional and Underutilized Crops provides a comprehensive understanding of the principles, strategies, and modern approaches used for the genetic improvement of traditional, indigenous, and underutilized crop species. The book highlights the importance of these crops in ensuring food security, nutritional diversity, climate resilience, and sustainable agriculture.

The text systematically explains the fundamentals of crop improvement, inheritance patterns, qualitative and quantitative traits, population genetics, genotype × environment interactions, heritability, and breeding systems in crop plants. Detailed discussions on physiological traits, mineral nutrition, stress tolerance, and breeding objectives under natural farming systems help readers understand the scientific basis of sustainable crop improvement.

Special emphasis is given to breeding for disease resistance, quality improvement, adaptability, multipurpose utilization, and participatory breeding approaches. Modern techniques such as molecular markers, marker-assisted selection, and advanced breeding methods are also discussed for enhancing crop productivity and resilience. Designed for students, researchers, breeders, and agricultural professionals, this book serves as a valuable resource for conserving and improving traditional crop genetic resources for future agricultural sustainability.

Dr. Kamaluddin is working as an Associate Professor in the Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding at Banda University of Agriculture and Technology, Banda, Uttar Pradesh. He holds a Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Breeding from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi. He has over 16 years of professional experience in teaching, research, and academic activities, with extensive expertise in Genetics and Plant Breeding.
Dr. Kamaluddin has made significant contributions to research through approximately 70 publications in journals of national and international repute, as well as presentations and contributions to seminars and conferences. His scholarly work includes 36 research articles, 3 review articles, 10 book chapters, 3 gene sequences submitted to NCBI, USA, and 2 practical manuals. He has also authored/edited three books, including the edited volume Plant Biotechnology: Principles and Applications, published by Springer Nature.
He has served as a major guide for 9 postgraduate and Ph.D. students and as a co-guide for 8 students. His prior professional experience includes one year as a Senior Research Fellow (SRF) and 11 months as a Research Associate at the Centre for Transgenic Plant Development, Department of Biotechnology, Hamdard University, New Delhi. He also served for 10 years and 4 months as an Assistant Professor at SKUAST-Kashmir, Wadura Campus.
His academic qualifications include B.Sc. (Ag) & A.H., M.Sc. (Ag) in Genetics and Plant Breeding from CSAU, Kanpur, and Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Breeding from BHU, Varanasi. He has qualified the National Eligibility Test (NET) conducted by ASRB, New Delhi, and received UGC-JRF/SRF support for doctoral research. He also completed a DBT, Government of India-funded Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Wheat Proteomics at ICAR-IARI, New Delhi.
His specialization is Genetics and Plant Breeding, with research interests encompassing plant biotechnology, crop improvement, wheat proteomics, and related areas of modern plant science. He has received four awards/recognitions and has an h-index of 15, reflecting his contribution to the field. His combination of teaching experience, research expertise, student mentorship, and scholarly publications has contributed substantially to agricultural education and research.

Chapter 1. Introduction to Traditional and Underutilized Crops

Chapter 2. Diversity and Conservation of Underutilized Crops

Chapter 3. Fundamentals of Crop Improvement

Chapter 4. Laws of Inheritance

Chapter 5. Qualitative Traits in Crop Improvement

Chapter 6. Quantitative Traits and Polygenic Inheritance

Chapter 7. Pureline Theory and Selection Concepts

Chapter 8. Components of Phenotypic Variation

Chapter 9. Genotype × Environment Interaction

Chapter 10. Heritability and Breeder’s Equation

Chapter 11. Population Genetics Principles

Chapter 12. Mating Systems in Crop Plants

Chapter 13. Crop Population Types

Chapter 14. Physiological Basis of Crop Improvement

Chapter 15. Mineral Nutrition and Crop Performance

Chapter 16. Breeding Objectives under Natural Farming Systems

Chapter 17. Breeding for Resistance, Quality, and Adaptation

Chapter 18. Breeding for Multipurpose Traits

Chapter 19. Conventional Plant Breeding Techniques

Chapter 20. Advanced and Participatory Breeding Approaches