M. Iqbal R. Khan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany and serves as Deputy Director of the Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD) at Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, India. He also holds adjunct appointments at Korea University, Seoul, South Korea, and at The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia. Dr. Khan’s research focuses on major staple crops, particularly wheat, with the objective of reducing their susceptibility to environmental stress under projected future climatic conditions and contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. His work addresses the challenges posed by environmental stressors to agricultural productivity, which remain a critical concern for global food and nutritional security. He has published over 100 research articles and has edited several books and authored multiple book chapters with leading publishers. He has an established citation record, as reflected in widely used bibliometric indicators. Dr. Khan has been recognized as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher in the Animal and Plant Science category and has been listed among the top 2% of scientists globally by Elsevier and Stanford University (2021–25). He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI), in Plant and Agricultural Sciences, and a recipient of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) Young Associates award (2024). His accolades include the R.H. Dastur Gold Medal Award—ISPP (2023), the Young Scientist Platinum Jubilee Award—NASI (2021), and the Young Scientist Award—ISPP (2018). He serves on the editorial boards of many renowned journals, including Plant and Soil, Journal of Plant Growth Regulation, 3-Biotech, and Plant Physiology Reports. He has also served as a guest editor for Agriculture, Frontiers in Plant Science, Sustainability, and Plant Physiology and Biochemistry. Professor M. Afshar Alam is presently working as Vice-Chancellor and Professor and Dean of School of Engineering Sciences and Technology at Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi. His research areas include Software Re-engineering, Data Mining, Bio-Informatics, Fuzzy databases, and Sustainable Development. He has authored 10 books, supervised more than 30 Doctoral students and more than 200 Post Graduate research projects and has more than 160 research papers in reputed journals to his credit. He is conferred with many prestigious awards like Bharat Samaj Ratna Award, AMP Award for Excellence in Education, Cooperative Citizen Award, World Environment Day Award, and Spardha Shree Award. He is also the member of various government bodies at both National and International level including University Grants Commission (UGC), All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), Department of Science & Technology (DST).Dr. Malik Zainul Abdin is Professor of Biotechnology in Jamia Hamdard’s School of Chemical and Life Sciences, India. He obtained his B.S. from Aligarh Muslim University and his Ph.D. from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute. Professor Abdin specializes in plant biotechnology, plant-derived therapeutics, and phytopharmaceutical innovation. His work spans metabolic engineering, molecular genetics, and bioactive compound stabilization. He brings more than three decades of research and teaching experience to the project, and has edited six prior volumes, including Elsevier’s Transgenic Technology Based Value Addition in Plant Biotechnology.
