Abstract
Nature provides an infinite variety of plant species which includes number of neglected and underutilized crops that have been pushed into forgetfulness by the predominant ‘major’ cereals. Millets and pseudo-cereals belong to such category having several adaptability and nutritional traits. As these crops are climate resilient, sustainable development will only happen if we manage and improve them in a scientifically planned way for protecting and firming livelihoods, and guarantee good nutrition and health. On International platforms, much less attention has been paid to millets and pseudo-cereals which are an important component of agricultural biodiversity along with food and nutritional security. For effective and successful crop improvement programme, tailoring novel germplasm by exploiting the crop wild relatives is a pre-requisite to identify donors for resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Therefore, the exact understanding of origins is important to circumvent genetic erosion, germplasm damage pertaining to the loss of ecotypes and landraces, loss of habitat, and increasing urbanization. In this context, the details of origin, spread and domestication of millets and pseudo-cereals are presented in this chapter.
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