The Maharashtra government has postponed elections to most cooperative societies in 304 drought-affected talukas, saying administrative staff must be prioritised for drought relief and mitigation work across the state. The decision took immediate effect through a Government Resolution issued by the Cooperation Department late Tuesday night.
The order suspends eligible cooperative society elections at their current stages until further instructions. It covers societies in talukas identified as drought-affected under the state’s Drought Management Code, 2016, but does not provide a common revised election date.
According to the Government Resolution, initial assessments based on Trigger 1 conditions identified drought in 265 talukas. Further assessments using both Trigger 1 and Trigger 2 indicators increased the number to 304 talukas across Maharashtra. The government said departments including Revenue, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Cooperation, Rural Development and Water Supply are currently engaged in relief and mitigation operations.
The government said continuing election-related activity would divert officials and administrative personnel from urgent drought responsibilities. It also said participation in the election process could create additional inconvenience for farmers and cooperative society members dealing with the effects of the drought affecting the 2026 Kharif season.
The postponement includes elections to several types of cooperative societies, with specified exemptions. Cooperative housing societies are excluded from the order. Elections must also proceed where the High Court or Supreme Court has specifically directed that they be held, or where the nomination stage had already begun before the Government Resolution was issued.
The decision also affects elections to District Central Cooperative Banks, or DCCBs, which are important institutions for rural credit and agricultural finance. In Ahilyanagar, 11 of the DCCB’s 21 seats had already been filled unopposed, while elections for the remaining 10 seats were pending. In Satara, nine of 21 seats had been filled unopposed, leaving 12 seats to be contested. The government said elections for the remaining seats in both banks had been postponed for six months. Seats already filled unopposed are not covered by the postponement in the same way as the pending contests.
The election decision comes alongside relief measures announced earlier for the 304 affected talukas through Government Resolutions dated September 25 and October 14. These measures include restructuring crop loans, suspending agricultural loan recoveries, waiving current electricity bills for agricultural pumps, supplying drinking water through tankers, ensuring fodder for livestock and expanding work under the Employment Guarantee Scheme.
The state cabinet also approved an advance payment of Rs 5,000 each for nearly 1.5 crore eligible farmers in drought-hit talukas before Diwali. The government has allocated Rs 7,500 crore for the assistance, which is to be transferred directly to beneficiaries’ bank accounts. Farmers whose crops have suffered damage of more than 33 per cent will be eligible for the payment.
The affected cooperative elections will remain suspended until further instructions, subject to the exemptions in the Government Resolution. The government has not yet announced a general revised schedule for the postponed polls.
