The total barley production is put at around 5.98 lakh tonnes this year as against 5.30 lakh tonnes last year. In the acreage the crop covered 2.87 lakh hectares this year as against 2.63 lakh hectares last year.

The agriculture department had estimated the production to be around the same level of last year but with the advent of new hybrid varieties, the yield has gone up. The per hectare production has jumped to 2083 kg as against 2015 kg last year. ``We expect the yield to still go up next year,'' says a spokesman of the department.

Before the sowings began this year -- barley is a rabi crop -- the estimated target of the area was a mere 2lakh hectares, confirms the spokesman.

However, the area has risen by about 43 per cent over the estimates due to the better climatic conditions followed by widespread and timely rains.Jaipur is the leading producing region in Rajasthan where barley is grown in large areas. The watering required in case of barley is not much compared to wheat.

In fact the cultivators are quite happy with the type of help and cooperation they get from the agriculture department. ``The field demonstrations are regular with the result that the yield has been on the upswing,'' says a leading farmer of the region.

Traders expect that the barley prices may not see much of volatility this year due to the higher production. Currently good quality barely is available at around Rs 450 per quintal and no price support has been given to the cultivators.

Last year the price level was almost the same with bulk of the purchases being made by the distilleries. Same is the case this year as well. We are encouraging the barley crop inthe state due to its huge potential as the climate in Rajasthan suits it fully, says the spokesman. He denied that the farmers had seed shortages this year. The department had made adequate arrangements to ensure the supplies of certified seeds and also the fertilisers. Luckily the crop has not been infested.

New crop has begun to hit the mandies in the state with the traders doing the brisk buying operations on behalf of the distillery manufacturers.The situation is likely to become normal after the middle of June.