Taramira (Eruca sativa) is a variety of which type of crop?

Taramira (Eruca sativa) is an oilseed crop of the mustard family (Brassicaceae). It is grown as a rabi crop, mainly in the dry regions of north-western India.

Key facts about taramira:

• Botanical name: Eruca sativa (also called rocket or arugula, whose leaves are eaten as a salad green in Europe).
• Family: Brassicaceae (the cabbage and mustard family), like rapeseed and mustard.
• It is a hardy, drought-tolerant crop that can grow on poor, sandy and saline soils with very little water.
• It is often grown on conserved soil moisture without irrigation, or with one or two irrigations, in areas where mustard does not grow well.
• It is also sown as a mixed crop with gram or barley.

Where it is grown:

• Mainly in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and western Uttar Pradesh, in arid and semi-arid areas.
• Rajasthan is the main producer.

Uses of taramira:

Its seeds contain about 35 to 40 per cent oil.

The oil is pungent. It is used in pickles, as a cooking oil in some areas, and as an industrial oil for soap making, lubricants and illuminating lamps.

The oil cake left after oil extraction is used as cattle feed (after processing) or as manure.

The young plants are sometimes used as green fodder or vegetables.

Rapeseed-mustard group of oilseeds in India:

• This group includes Indian mustard (rai), toria, yellow sarson, brown sarson, gobhi sarson, karan rai and taramira.
• Together, rapeseed and mustard form the second most important oilseed group in India after soybean (by area and production, depending on the year).

Research:

The ICAR-Directorate of Rapeseed-Mustard Research, located at Bharatpur in Rajasthan, conducts research on taramira and other mustard-group crops.

Importance:

Because it needs little water and can grow on marginal land, taramira is valuable for dryland farmers in the face of water scarcity.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Pulse crops include gram, tur, moong, urad and lentil.
• ✗Fibre crops include cotton, jute and mesta.
• ✗Fodder grasses include napier grass and guinea grass.