Gujarat farm relief hits ₹22,733 crore over decade, 2025-26 sets record
Synopsis
Gujarat's farm relief bill crossed ₹22,733 crore over a decade — but nearly half of that came in a single year. The 2025-26 payout of ₹10,337 crore, seven times the previous year, is not just a record; it is a signal that climate-driven agricultural losses in the state are accelerating faster than any prior trend line suggested.
Key Takeaways
The Gujarat government disbursed ₹22,733 crore in agricultural relief to more than 1.36 crore farmers between 2015-16 and 2025-26 .
2025-26 recorded the largest single-year payout — ₹10,337 crore to 36,74,065 farmers — nearly 46% of the decade's total.
The 2025-26 disbursement was more than seven times the ₹1,491 crore paid out in 2024-25 .
Cyclone Biparjoy ( June 2023 ) damaged crops across approximately 1.3 lakh hectares in Kutch and Banaskantha , triggering a dedicated relief package.
The decade-long trend shows a clear escalation in climate-related farm losses, with relief frameworks expanding in scale and coverage each year.
The Gujarat government has disbursed ₹22,733 crore in agricultural relief and compensation to more than 1.36 crore farmers over the 10-year period from 2015-16 to 2025-26, with 2025-26 recording the single largest annual payout in the state's history. The cumulative figure reflects the mounting economic toll of recurrent floods, droughts, cyclones, unseasonal rainfall, and soil erosion on Gujarat's farming communities.
Record Payout in 2025-26
The sharpest escalation came in 2025-26, when the state paid out ₹10,337 crore to 36,74,065 farmers — a jump of more than seven times over the previous year's ₹1,491 crore. This single year's disbursement accounted for nearly 46% of all agricultural relief paid over the entire decade. The payout covered crop-loss events including special relief packages for paddy and cotton growers following damage reported in October 2024, as well as relief measures covering the August–September and October 2025 period.
A Decade of Rising Losses
The data reveals a clear upward trajectory. In 2015-16, just 1,82,041 farmers received ₹279 crore following heavy rainfall, floods, and unseasonal rains. By 2017-18, compensation had climbed to ₹1,706 crore after widespread flooding and soil erosion. The following year, ₹1,678 crore was disbursed to 17,59,614 farmers impacted by both heavy rainfall across 51 talukas and drought conditions across 45 talukas — one of Gujarat's most challenging monsoon seasons on record.
In 2019-20, unseasonal rainfall triggered the Agricultural Assistance Package-2019, under which 33,18,097 farmers received ₹2,489 crore — at the time the highest beneficiary count in the dataset. The figure was surpassed again in 2020-21, when heavy rainfall and floods led to payouts of ₹2,906 crore covering approximately 19,03,575 farmers under the Agricultural Relief Package-2020.
Cyclone Biparjoy and Mid-Decade Volatility
Relief requirements eased temporarily in 2022-23, with compensation falling to ₹197 crore for 1,93,771 farmers. However, extreme weather returned with force in 2023-24: the state paid ₹410 crore to 2,55,641 farmers affected by unseasonal rain, heavy rainfall, and Cyclone Biparjoy, which struck Gujarat's coast in June 2023. The cyclone caused extensive damage to crops, orchards, and trees — particularly in Kutch and Banaskantha districts — across an estimated 1.3 lakh hectares, prompting a dedicated relief package for affected cultivators.
In 2021-22, the state had disbursed ₹1,240 crore to 7,67,330 farmers through the Cyclone Agricultural Relief Package-2021 and Agricultural Relief Package-2021, implemented in two phases. In 2024-25, disbursements rose again to ₹1,491 crore for 8,04,703 farmers affected by unseasonal rainfall, heavy monsoon damage, and soil erosion during the Kharif season.
What the Trend Signals
According to official year-wise data, the decade-long figures point to a structural intensification of climate-related agricultural losses in Gujarat. Officials indicated that crop-loss compensation programmes have expanded significantly as weather-related claims have increased across districts. The state's disaster-response framework has grown in both scale and coverage — yet the accelerating pace of payouts raises questions about long-term fiscal sustainability and the adequacy of pre-emptive climate adaptation measures for the farming sector.
With climate patterns showing no signs of stabilising, Gujarat's agricultural relief architecture will face continued pressure in the years ahead.
Point of View
337 crore payout in a single year — nearly half the decade's total — is not a relief exercise; it is a fiscal distress signal. Gujarat's compensation architecture has scaled up impressively, but scaling up payouts is not the same as reducing vulnerability. The state has yet to demonstrate a commensurate investment in pre-emptive climate adaptation: crop insurance penetration, weather-resilient seed programmes, and drainage infrastructure. Without that shift, the relief bill will keep doubling, and the farmers bearing the losses will keep waiting for cheques rather than solutions.
NationPress
10 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How much has Gujarat paid in agricultural relief over the past decade?
The Gujarat government has disbursed ₹22,733 crore in agricultural relief and compensation to more than 1.36 crore farmers between 2015-16 and 2025-26. The relief covered losses from floods, droughts, cyclones, unseasonal rainfall, and soil erosion.
Why was 2025-26 a record year for Gujarat farm relief?
In 2025-26, Gujarat paid ₹10,337 crore to 36,74,065 farmers — more than seven times the previous year's ₹1,491 crore — making it the largest single-year agricultural relief disbursement in the state's history. The payout covered crop losses from multiple events, including special packages for paddy and cotton growers and relief for damage reported between August and October 2025.
Which farmers received relief under the Agricultural Assistance Package-2019?
Under the Agricultural Assistance Package-2019, a total of 33,18,097 farmers received ₹2,489 crore in 2019-20 following widespread unseasonal rainfall. At the time, this was the highest beneficiary count recorded in Gujarat's agricultural relief data.
What damage did Cyclone Biparjoy cause to Gujarat's agriculture?
Cyclone Biparjoy struck Gujarat's coast in June 2023, damaging crops, orchards, and trees across approximately 1.3 lakh hectares, with Kutch and Banaskantha districts among the worst affected. The government announced a dedicated relief package for cultivators impacted by the cyclone.
What does the decade-long trend in Gujarat farm relief indicate?
Official data shows a clear and accelerating increase in climate-related agricultural losses in Gujarat since 2015-16, when just ₹279 crore was paid to 1,82,041 farmers. The rising scale of disbursements signals that weather-related risks to the state's farming sector are intensifying, prompting the government to expand its disaster-response framework.
