Sesame (Til) Cultivation — Rajasthan / Gujarat

Sesame (Sesamum indicum), called til in Hindi, is one of humanity's oldest cultivated oilseeds — "the queen of oilseeds" for its high oil content (50%) and nutritional profile. Rajasthan and Gujarat together produce 65% of India's sesame crop. It is a kharif crop sown in June-July on well-drained sandy loam soils and harvested in September-October. Drought-tolerant and low-input, sesame suits marginal lands. The seeds (white, black, and brown varieties) are used as condiments on breads and sweets, cold-pressed into sesame oil (til ka tel) for cooking and Ayurvedic oil massage, and mixed with jaggery for til ladoo and chikki confections. Black sesame seeds are ritual items in Hindu funerary rites (tarpan). Sesame paste (tahini) export to the Middle East is growing. Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation processes sesame for export — India is the world's largest sesame exporter. NRCSS (National Research Centre on Seed Spices, Ajmer) has developed high-yielding variety TC-25 for dryland conditions.