Crop losses at home leave some students cutting expenses, taking up part-time work
Her family has one acre of land where it grows sugarcane and has suffered losses this year. Torave has had to ask her landlord for additional time to pay rent. She has also been trying to cut down on food expenses. Avdhoot Mali from Ekurga village in Latur, who is pursuing an MA in geography at S P College and preparing for the UPSC examination, has been forced to work part-time at a mall alongside his studies. His family owns four acres of land where they cultivated soybean but the crop failure has sharply reduced their income. He also receives one meal a day through a food scholarship scheme, helping him reduce his food expenses. The affected areas include large parts of Marathwada and Vidarbha as well as parts of western Maharashtra, where a significant number of farming households depend on the Kharif crop for their annual income.
These student experiences come even as the state government has declared drought in 265 out of its 358 talukas across 34 districts following activation of the first trigger under the drought management code based on rainfall deficit and other indicators during the 2026 Kharif season. Because there is no water for farming and there is no real source of income there, “I cannot go back home. Because of financial difficulties, the higher and technical education department has also directed universities and colleges to take additional measures to ensure that students from drought-affected areas do not discontinue their education.
Vanita Torave from Someshwar Murum who is pursuing an M.Com. at S P College, said that her parents have asked her to return home as they are finding it difficult to continue supporting her living expenses in Pune. “I do not want to discontinue my education, but managing basic expenses has become more difficult this year,” she said. For me, education is the only way forward, so I am trying my best to stay here and continue studying,” Mali said.
The assistance and initiatives undertaken by colleges will be documented and reviewed every 15 days. Patil asked institutions to extend support to students and colleges in areas more severely affected by drought and directed the department to monitor such initiatives. A separate cell will be established at the directorate of higher education and each university will set up a task force.
