Gujarat CM Patel announces Rs 10,000-crore relief package after unseasonal rains wreck 42 lakh hectares

AHMEDABAD: Reeling under one of the worst unseasonal rain spells in two decades, Gujarats farmers have suffered massive crop devastation across 42 lakh hectares and 16,000 villages. On Friday, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel announced a Rs 10,000-crore relief package coupled with government procurement of groundnut, moong, urad, and soybean worth Rs 15,000 crore from November 9, promising that no farmer will be left without help. Gujarats farmlands, already scarred by erratic monsoon patterns, have now been battered by unseasonal rains that struck at the end of October, which the Chief Minister described as the kind Gujarat has not seen in two decades. The deluge drenched 41 lakh hectares of cultivated land, crippling the livelihoods of over 17 lakh farmers across 16,387 villages. As assessment reports poured in, the figures told a grim story -- over 33% crop loss in nearly 31 lakh hectares, translating to an estimated Rs 1,574 crore blow to the agrarian economy. The Saurashtra belt emerged as ground zero, where 80% of the total state damage occurred. Out of 37.71 lakh hectares sown, 33.53 lakh hectares were hit, devastating 12.65 lakh farmers and causing Rs 1,218 crore in losses. The Mid-East zone followed with 52.5% of crops damaged, while South Gujarat reported 79% cultivation loss, and North Gujarat too saw heavy impact across 4.14 lakh hectares. Seeing the scale of disaster firsthand, the Chief Minister swiftly convened an emergency high-level meeting with officials from the agriculture, revenue, and finance departments. Chairing the meet himself, Patel greenlit a massive Rs 10,000-crore relief and assistance package, calling it a duty towards the sons of the soil who feed us all. Unseasonal rains of a kind unseen in the last two decades have caused huge crop losses in multiple districts, the Chief Minister said in his statement on Friday. I and my fellow ministers visited the affected districts, spoke directly to the farmers, and felt their pain. Understanding their struggle, the state government stands shoulder to shoulder with them with full sympathy. Keeping in mind their hardship, I am announcing a relief package of about Rs 10,000 crore. Alongside, we will begin procurement of groundnut, moong, urad, and soybean worth over Rs 15,000 crore at support prices from November 9, Patel added, assuring that the government was, is, and will always be with our farmers. Following Patels directive, hundreds of agricultural survey teams fanned out across the districts, covering 70% of the damaged area so far. The CM personally ordered that no farmer should be left without assistance and that all relief formalities be expedited this week. This package comes as Gujarats second major farm relief intervention in just three months, following a Rs 947-crore payout in August-September for flood-affected talukas in Kutch, Banaskantha, Patan, and Junagadh. That earlier crisis had already signaled the states growing vulnerability to climate-linked agrarian distress and this latest spell has only deepened the challenge. From drought to deluge, Gujarats farmers have borne the full brunt of climate volatility this year. But with the state government now rolling out an unprecedented twin package of Rs 10,000 crore in direct relief and Rs 15,000 crore in crop procurement, the CM has sent a clear message: In every calamity, the farmer will not stand alone.