Key facts

  • The arid western plain covers 47.4 lakh hectares in the Agriculture Department's agro-climatic zone overview.
  • In 2024-25, net sown area formed 53.02 per cent of Rajasthan's reporting area, according to the Rajasthan Economic Review 2025-26.
  • Agricultural Census 2015-16 recorded 76.55 lakh operational land holdings in Rajasthan with an average size of 2.73 hectares.
  • In 2023-24, Rajasthan contributed 41.34 per cent of India's bajra production and 43.43 per cent of rapeseed and mustard production.
  • PMKSY began nationally on 1 July 2015, while PMFBY has been implemented since Kharif 2016 for crop-risk cover.

Key Points at a Glance

  1. 1

    Rajasthan's official agriculture frame uses ten agro-climatic zones based on rainfall, soil, relief and cropping pattern.

  2. 2

    The arid western plain covers 47.4 lakh hectares in the Agriculture Department's agro-climatic zone overview.

  3. 3

    In 2024-25, net sown area formed 53.02 per cent of Rajasthan's reporting area, according to the Rajasthan Economic Review 2025-26.

  4. 4

    Agricultural Census 2015-16 recorded 76.55 lakh operational land holdings in Rajasthan with an average size of 2.73 hectares.

  5. 5

    In 2023-24, Rajasthan contributed 41.34 per cent of India's bajra production and 43.43 per cent of rapeseed and mustard production.

  6. 6

    PMKSY began nationally on 1 July 2015, while PMFBY has been implemented since Kharif 2016 for crop-risk cover.

  7. 7

    CAZRI is headquartered at Jodhpur; it began as a desert afforestation station in 1952 and became the Central Arid Zone Research Institute in 1959.

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Agro-Climatic Base of Resources

Rajasthan's natural-resource geography must be read through rainfall, soils, relief and water availability. The state is not one uniform desert farming region. Its official ten agro-climatic zones separate the arid western plain, irrigated north-western plain, internal-drainage dry zone, Luni basin, flood-prone eastern plains, humid south-eastern plain and southern hill areas. This frame is high-yield for objective questions because crop, irrigation and rural livelihood answers usually depend on the correct region.

The western and semi-arid belts support hardy kharif crops such as bajra, moth, guar and sesame. Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh show how canal irrigation changes the crop calendar and allows cotton, wheat, mustard and gram. Kota, Bundi, Baran and Jhalawar form the humid south-eastern Hadoti belt, where higher rainfall, black soils and the Chambal command support soybean, wheat, coriander, vegetables and rice in assured-water pockets. Banswara and Dungarpur add the southern hill agriculture pattern.

Exam takeaway: match every crop with its region, season and water source before memorising a rank.

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