JRO 204 (Suren)
A tall tossa jute notified in 2007 for early sowing. Non-lodging, non-shattering pods and resistance to premature flowering. The AINP list gives 36 to 38 q/ha, a potential well above the farm averages of 13 to 17 q/ha.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Jute
- Type
- Tossa jute (Corchorus olitorius)
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level)
- Seed rate
- Crop-level figures for tossa (olitorius): 5 to 6 kg/ha in rows or 6 to 7 kg/ha broadcast in Assam; 5 kg/ha in rows or 7 kg/ha broadcast in Tamil Nadu. No JRO 204-only rate found.
- Expected yield
- 36 to 38 q/ha of fibre (AINP list)
- Suitable soil
- Loam or sandy loam on land that drains; tossa does not thrive in standing water (TNAU)
- Disease resistance
- Resistant to premature flowering; no disease rating found
- Release
- ICAR-CRIJAF, Barrackpore · notified 2007 (S.O. 1703(E), 5 October 2007) for West Bengal
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
JRO 204, named Suren, is a tossa jute (Corchorus olitorius) variety from ICAR-CRIJAF, Barrackpore. The AINP list on jute and allied fibres gives its notification as S.O. 1703(E) of 5 October 2007, for West Bengal, and a yield of 36 to 38 q/ha. It describes a tall, non-lodging plant with non-shattering pods and resistance to premature flowering, and the variety is meant for early sowing. Secondary sources give its cross as IDN/SU/053 x KEN/DS/060. CRIJAF names it among the recent tossa varieties for seed production in western Odisha.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose JRO 204 if you want a recent tossa on the AINP list with a stated yield, 36 to 38 q/ha, and a plant that stands up to wind and keeps its pods. It resists premature flowering, so a March or April sowing should not send it to flower early. Choose JRO 524 if you want the longest field record, and JRO 66 if you sow later, from mid-April. JBO 2003 H (Ira) is the tossa with the finer fibre numbers. For low land that floods, take a white jute, JRC 321.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeEarly sowing (AINP list). A technical presentation gives about 10 March to 15 April.
- Seed rateCrop-level figures for tossa (olitorius): 5 to 6 kg/ha in rows or 6 to 7 kg/ha broadcast in Assam; 5 kg/ha in rows or 7 kg/ha broadcast in Tamil Nadu. No JRO 204-only rate found.
- SpacingAssam: rows 22 to 25 cm apart, plants 5 to 7 cm apart, thinned to 60 to 70 plants a square metre. TNAU: 25 x 5 cm.
- FertilizerTossa (olitorius), Assam package: 30 kg N, 25 kg P2O5 and 25 kg K2O per hectare, with half the N and P2O5 and all the K2O at final land preparation and the rest at 4 to 6 weeks. Take off the nutrients in any cow dung or compost you add.
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A stated yield of 36 to 38 q/ha on the AINP list.
- Tall, non-lodging plant with non-shattering pods.
- Resistant to premature flowering, so it is meant for early sowing.
Things to consider
- 36 to 38 q/ha is a potential. The national average is about 13 q/ha, and 20 to 25 with improved practices (IARI).
- We found no disease rating for JRO 204 in the sources we could read.
- Tossa jute does not thrive in standing water. Keep it off land that holds water.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- West Bengal
- Bihar
- Assam
36 to 38 quintals on paper, and what a farm actually gets
The AINP list gives JRO 204 a yield of 36 to 38 q/ha. That is a trial result. Farms get less. An IARI agronomy chapter puts the national average at 1.3 t/ha, 13 q/ha, and says improved varieties with improved practices can reach 2.0 to 2.5 t/ha, 20 to 25 q/ha. CRIJAF gives Odisha an average of 17.4 q/ha. Plan on the practice figure, not the trial figure.
Put money to it, with care. The MSP for raw jute in the 2026-27 season is Rs 5,925 a quintal for TD-3 grade. At that price 13 q/ha is Rs 77,025, 17.4 q/ha is Rs 1,03,095, 20 to 25 q/ha is Rs 1,18,500 to Rs 1,48,125, and 36 to 38 q/ha is Rs 2,13,300 to Rs 2,25,150. These are gross figures before seed, labour, retting and transport. And your lot is paid by grade, so a lower grade fetches less.
The gap between 13 and 38 is not luck. It is seed you can trust, the right sowing date, a stand thinned to 60 to 70 plants a square metre, weeding at 20 and 35 days, and clean retting. JRO 204 gives you the plant. The rest is yours.
Can you keep your own planting material?
JRO 204 is an ordinary, non-hybrid variety, so seed from your own seed plot grows into the same type. Fibre jute is cut before the seed is ripe, so seed comes from a separate plot left to mature. IARI gives a seed yield of about 0.25 to 0.30 t/ha for tossa. In western Odisha CRIJAF sows a seed crop between 1 and 7 July, in rows 40 to 45 cm apart. Certified seed covers only about 35% of India's jute area, so ask a certified producer first.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Jute variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JBO 2003 H (Ira) | Finer tossa fibre, no early flowering | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level) | No labelled AINP yield found; about 38 q/ha of fibre is quoted in a technical presentation | West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha |
| JRC-212 | White jute for mid and high land | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (crop-level) | 25 to 28 q/ha of fibre (AINP); 22 to 26 q/ha in the Assam package | West Bengal, Bihar, Assam |
| JRC-321 | Fine white jute for low land | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (crop-level) | 20 to 25 q/ha of fibre (AINP list) | West Bengal, Assam, Bihar |
| JRO 204 (Suren)this page | Early-sown tall tossa, 36 to 38 q/ha | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level) | 36 to 38 q/ha of fibre (AINP list) | West Bengal, Bihar, Assam |
| JRO-524 (Navin) | Long-record tossa, mid-March sowing | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level) | 32 to 40 q/ha of fibre (AINP list); 25 to 30 q/ha in the Assam package | West Bengal, Bihar, Assam |
| JRO-66 (Golden Jubilee Tossa) | Later sowing, mid-April to early May | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level) | 35 to 40 q/ha of fibre, TD-2 grade (AINP list) | West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha |
| JRO-8432 (Shakti Tossa) | Early-sown tossa, mid-March | Cut at the small-pod stage, about 100 to 120 days; the full crop is 120 to 140 days (TNAU, crop-level) | 35 to 40 q/ha of fibre (AINP list) | West Bengal, Assam |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Jute is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Jute plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Jute variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Jute into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Jute in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Jute rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Frequently asked questions
When should I sow JRO 204?
Early. The AINP list recommends JRO 204 for early sowing, and a technical presentation gives about 10 March to 15 April. It resists premature flowering, which is the problem with early-sown tossa. Counting 100 to 120 days, a 10 March sowing is cut between about 18 June and 8 July. Assam gives mid-March to May for olitorius types such as JRO 524.
How much will JRO 204 give on my farm?
Do not count on 36 to 38 q/ha. That is the AINP list figure. IARI puts the national average at 1.3 t/ha and says 2.0 to 2.5 t/ha is possible with improved practices. CRIJAF gives Odisha an average of 17.4 q/ha. A well-run crop on good land with good seed may reach the low to middle 20s in quintals a hectare. Keep your own yield record for each field.
Is JRO 204 the same as Suren?
Yes. Suren is the popular name for JRO 204, a tossa jute (Corchorus olitorius). The JRO prefix marks tossa and JRC marks white jute. CRIJAF writes it as JRO 204 (Suren) when it lists it among the tossa varieties it recommends for seed production in western Odisha.
When was JRO 204 released and from what cross?
The AINP list gives S.O. 1703(E) dated 5 October 2007, for West Bengal. Secondary sources give the cross as IDN/SU/053 x KEN/DS/060, which we could not check against a CRIJAF release note. Treat the notification as the firm fact and the cross as reported.
Can I grow JRO 204 for seed?
In western Odisha, yes: CRIJAF suggests JRO 204 among the varieties for a seed crop, sown between 1 and 7 July in rows 40 to 45 cm apart with about 2.5 lakh plants a hectare. A seed crop is a separate plot that is left to ripen, not the fibre crop. Elsewhere, ask your state seed corporation. Only about 35% of India's jute area gets certified seed.
Sourced from: Details of varieties — AINP on Jute and Allied Fibres (ICAR), Seed production technology of jute for western Odisha — Indian Farming 70(2), 2020 (ICAR-CRIJAF), Agronomy: kharif crops, jute — Dr B. Gangaiah, Division of Agronomy, ICAR-IARI, Package of practices for kharif crops of Assam, 2021 — jute (AAU), Crop production: jute — TNAU Agritech Portal. editorial policy.