In 1877, a famine struck Maharashtra, affecting hundreds of thousands. The Phule couple appealed to the people for help and trudged from village to village collecting donations in cash and kind. With the help of friends like Dr Shivappa, they established the Victoria Balashram at Dhankawadi. The ashram provided meals to more than a thousand poor and needy people every day. Savitribai helped with the management of the ashram. She also visited the famine-hit areas along with workers of the Satyashodhak Samaj. In April 1877, she was in the Junnar area of western Maharashtra. From there, she wrote a letter to Jotirao Phule giving a heart-wrenching account of the sufferings of the people: “The year 1876 has gone, but the famine has not – it stays in most horrendous forms here. The people are dying. The animals are dying, collapsing. There is severe scarcity of food. No fodder for animals. The people are forced to leave their villages. Some are selling their children, their young girls