AHMEDABAD: Four farmers from Gujarat have died by suicide in the past 15 days as unseasonal rains wiped out crops and left behind unrelenting debt. Though the Gujarat government had only recently announced a Rs 10,000 crore loan relief package for farmers, the consecutive suicides reveal that the scheme has not reached those in need.

A 50-year-old farmer from Ardoi village in Kotdasangani taluka, Rajkot district consumed poison in his farm late Saturday night. Dilipbhai Virdiya was found dead by his family: "My father was tense for 15–20 days after the last rain. When we found him, it was too late," his son Utsav told local media.

Dilipbhai had taken loans to sow cumin, groundnut, and onion crops across 28 bighas of land, including 12 bighas of family land. "Everything went to waste. We

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