Key Points at a Glance

Rajasthan agriculture is best remembered as a water-constrained system that still gives India leading shares in mustard, bajra, guar, barley, oilseeds, spices and wool.

1. About 70% of Rajasthan's population depends on agriculture and allied activities; agriculture and allied activities contribute a major share of the state's economy through crops, livestock, forestry, fishing and related work.
2. Rajasthan is India's leading producer of mustard/rapeseed, with about 46.13% of national production, and bajra, with about 44.66% of national production.
3. Rajasthan is India's dominant guar state, producing about 90.36% of India's guar and roughly 80% of global guar output.
4. Rajasthan is also first in India for barley production and first in India for coriander and cumin production.
5. Total foodgrain production in 2024-25 is 267.67 lakh tonnes; total oilseed production is 96.17 lakh tonnes; cotton production is 18.45 lakh bales.
6. Rajasthan covers about 10.4% of India's geographical area. The state geographical rainfall average is about 531 mm a year, but the arid western agricultural belt receives far less, and the crop geography is shaped by this water stress.
7. Only a limited share of Rajasthan's cultivated area is irrigated; wells and tubewells dominate irrigation, while canals matter most in northern and north-western Rajasthan.
8. Rajasthan has 10 agro-climatic zones, each with a distinct crop pattern based on rainfall, soils, relief and irrigation access.
9. Western arid Rajasthan is associated with bajra, guar and moth bean in Kharif, and wheat, mustard and cumin in Rabi where moisture or irrigation allows it. Eastern Rajasthan is dominated by wheat, mustard and gram.
10. The Indira Gandhi Nahar Pariyojana transformed parts of the Thar Desert by enabling canal irrigation, crop diversification and settled agriculture in the north-western command area.
11. Kinnow in Sri Ganganagar, dates in Jaisalmer, Mathania chilli around Jodhpur and coriander in Baran-Jhalawar are the high-value horticulture anchors.
12. Rajasthan is India's leading wool state and has internationally recognised breeds such as Tharparkar cattle, Rathi cattle, Nagauri draught cattle and the Marwari horse.
13. Rajasthan ranks second in groundnut production and third in gram, jowar, total pulses and soybean.
14. Rajasthan Agricultural Policy 2023 targets higher farm incomes, wider micro-irrigation, crop diversification and stronger farm-market linkages.
15. The 2026 current-affairs frame links Rajasthan agriculture with carbon markets, heat stress, fertiliser supply, digital extension and Bharat-VISTAAR's voice-first advisory platform.

For RPSC, the recurring answer line is simple: Rajasthan's agriculture is not weak because it is dry; it is specialised because it is dry. The state converts aridity into comparative advantage through drought-resistant cereals and pulses, oilseeds, spices, animal husbandry and canal-based pockets of intensive farming.