Cytogeneticist's insight about molecular markers and their role in crop improvement

The productivity of domestic crop plants has evolved through the collective efforts of scientists since the dawn of agriculture.  From a historical perspective, improved crop yields have been influenced perhaps more by genetic improvement than by any other single factor.  Despite the breeding progress already achieved, additional gains in agricultural productivity are demanded at an ever-faster pace by population growth and by changes in agricultural practices, biotic and abiotic environments and consumer preferences. Feeding 8 billion by 2025 AD and 10 billion by 2050 AD will be the sole task for agricultural scientists and the policy makers for coming 50 years.  Of the several routes that can result into greater crop production and increased world food supply, increasing yield per hectare per crop through increased genetic yield potential will be the most important route.  Crop breeders have envisioned and are following several approaches for sustainable improvement of crop productivity.  Of these empirical selection; analytical breeding; ideotype breeding and alien introgression are some of the approaches which crop breeders are following for further improving the crop productivity.