Growing Sesame (Til) in Rajasthan

Updated 2026-07-13 · Region guide

Rajasthan sits in the Western Dry Region with arid to semi-arid, low erratic rain and sandy, sandy-loam. The arid west — India's leader in bajra, mustard and gram on light soils. Here's how sesame (til) — a Kharif & summer crop — fits, and how to grow it well here.

Is Rajasthan good for growing sesame (til)?

When to sow sesame (til) in Rajasthan

Sow in Kharif Jul and harvest around Sep–Oct. The crop takes about 80–95 days. In Rajasthan's arid to semi-arid, low erratic rain, the window matters more than anything else you do: ~500 mm (variable) rainfall and largely rainfed; Indira Gandhi Canal pockets mean a late Kharif & summer sowing runs sesame (til) into the wrong weather at its most sensitive stage.

Where sesame (til) actually grows in Rajasthan

Sesame is a rainfed kharif crop across Pratapgarh, Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Rajsamand, Ajmer, Nagaur, Pali, Jodhpur, Barmer and Jalore, on light sandy and sandy-loam soils. It goes in on land with no irrigation and no fallback — which is precisely why it is grown.

Where it is sold: Kota, Bhilwara, Pratapgarh, Bhawanimandi and Jodhpur are the main yards, and Rajasthan's bold white seed mostly moves to Gujarat's hullers and out through Kandla/Mundra. Note the number: sesame's MSP (₹10,346/quintal for 2026-27) is the highest of any kharif crop — but procurement is almost non-existent, so it is a headline, not a floor.

The local risk to plan for: Sesame dies from a day of standing water; on Rajasthan's sandy soils that is rare, but a monsoon break at flowering is not, and it is the routine cause of failure here. Phyllody, spread by jassids, turns flowers into green leafy tufts that set no seed at all.

Best sesame (til) varieties for Rajasthan

Grown in Rajasthan:

• RT-346 (2009; compact capsules, resists leaf curl and Cercospora)
• RT-351 (2010)
• RT-127 (bold white seed, drought hardy, resists Macrophomina and powdery mildew)
• RT-125
• RT-46

Confirm the variety is notified for Rajasthan — on sandy, sandy-loam under largely rainfed; Indira Gandhi Canal pockets, a variety bred for a different zone will underperform whatever the seed packet claims. Your Rajasthan KVK or agriculture officer holds the current shortlist.

Typical yield & price

Typical yield here is around 3–5 quintal/acre. The government MSP is ₹8,635/quintal; local mandi rates vary, so check YieldAI for today's live Rajasthan price.

Common problems in Rajasthan

The pests and diseases to scout for:

• phyllody — a jassid-spread phytoplasma; infected plants set no seed and must be pulled, not sprayed
• leaf webber / capsule borer webbing the top shoots and capsules
• Macrophomina stem and root rot on hot, dry sandy land — RT-127 carries some resistance
• gall fly on the developing capsules

arid to semi-arid conditions shape which of these bite hardest each season — scout early and act while a problem is small. YieldAI can identify a pest or disease from a photo of your crop.

Key practices

• Rogue phyllody plants out as soon as you see the leafy 'witches broom' flowers — there is no spray for it, and leaving them feeds the vector
• Sow on the slope or on ridges: sesame takes drought far better than it takes 24 hours of standing water
• Don't budget on the MSP headline — with effectively no procurement, the Kota/Bhilwara mandi rate is your real price
• Harvest at capsule yellowing and stack upright in stooks to finish drying; wait too long and the capsules shatter your crop onto the ground