Horticulture Science Series, Vol. IX. Tuber and Root Crops

Contents: Foreword to the series/M.S. Swaminathan. Foreword to the volume/Mangala Rai. Preface. 1. Introduction/M.S. Palaniswami, Shirly Raichal Anil and K.V. Peter. 2. History, origin and geographical distribution/M.S. Palaniswami and Shirly Raichal Anil. 3. Botany, physiology and biodiversity/Shirly Raichal Anil and M.S. Palaniswami. 4. Biochemical constituents and pharmaceutical and nutraceutical values/M.S. Palaniswami and Shirly Raichal Anil. 5. Anti-nutritional factors/M.S. Palaniswami and Shirly Raichal Anil. 6. Improved varieties in India/M.S. Palaniswami and Shirly Raichal Anil. 7. Agronomy and production technologies/M.S. Palaniswami, Shirly Raichal Anil and P.K. Singh. 8. Pests and diseases: their management and plant quarantine/M.S. Palaniswami and J. Tarafdar. 9. Tools and equipments for tuber crops/S.K. Nanda. 10. Root and tuber crops for food and feed in North Eastern States of India/M. Sankaran, A. Kumaresan, B. Santhosh, M.S. Palaniswami and K.M. Bujarbaruah. 11. Tuber crops starches/S.N. Moorthy. 12. Post harvest technologies and utilization/S.K. Nanda. 13. Tuber crops biotechnology/M.N. Sheela and K. Rajmohan. 14. Bioprocessing for value additions/R.C. Ray and M.S. Palaniswami. 15. Indigenous traditional knowledge on root and tuber crops in India/M.S. Palaniswami, M. Sankaran, K. Dhinesh Babu and B. Santhosh. 16. Potentials of tropical tuber crops/George Thomas and K.V. Peter. 17. Future thrust/M.S. Palaniswami, Shirly Raichal Anil and K.V. Peter. Suggested readings. Appendix.

"Tuber and root crops are the third important group of food crops after cereals and pulses, feeding about one fifth of the world population. With  the burgeoning population coupled with limited land, water and other resources, the future beckons tuber and root crops in fulfilling the country's food requirements. These crops have higher biological efficiency and greater adoption with profound production potential per unit area per unit time. Tuber and root crops are well known from time immemorial as nature's energy bank and famine saviour. This book is conceived to have an updated version on the tuber and root crops especially in the Indian context, including information on the history, biodiversity, geographical distribution, botany, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical values, new varieties, production technologies, IPM strategies, starches, post harvest technologies and value added products, bio-processing, biotechnology, ITK and future thrusts. Various aspects of cassava, sweet potato, elephant foot yam, taro, yams, coleus, yam bean and arrow root are elucidated in 17 chapters and appendices. This book will be of immense use to the policy makers, scientists, post graduate and under graduate students and officials concerned with tuber and root crops research, development and extension."