Stored-grain insect pests cause critical global post-harvest losses, with an estimated 17% of food lost during storage at an annual cost of $100 billion, including 14 million tonnes in India. Infestations by beetles, weevils, moths and borers lead to both quantitative damage and qualitative degradation, altering essential nutrients and organoleptic properties. Rapid early detection technologies including olfactory perception systems (SPME and E-noses) and electromagnetic spectrum techniques (computer vision, hyperspectral imaging and X-ray imaging) enable prompt identification even at low pest densities. To mitigate these losses, innovative management strategies combine hermetic and low-pressure storage structures with physical non-thermal treatments such as cold plasma, ozone and irradiation. Furthermore, sustainable protection is achieved by integrating biorational tools (essential oils and insect growth regulators) alongside advanced molecular approaches like RNA interference (RNAi) and CRISPR-Cas across the post-harvest chain.