Ahmednagar scales up water conservation, recharging activities Wide publicity provided through mass media has increased public participation in water conservation activities, going by the enthusiasm of numerous individuals going forth to participate in activities organized by Ahmednagar district administration of Maharashtra. Among the interventions made are plantation of roadside saplings, afforestation in large areas, rain water harvesting structures atop individual and community buildings, watershed activities such as CCT (Continuous Contour Trench), groundwater and well recharge through soak pits with filter beds, renovation of traditional water bodies, nala deepening, bunding structures and staggered trenches. This was reported by the Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) team that visited Ahmednagar between 12th and 14th August, 2019. The team comprised Central Nodal Officer (CNO), Richa Bagla, Joint Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy; Block Nodal Officer, BNO Supriya Devasthali, Director Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry; and Technical Officer (TO) Akhilesh Agarwal, Central Water and Power Research Station, Pune. The team visited the villages of Mahalwadi (Sangamner Block), Guha (Rahuri Block), Puntamba (Rahata Block), Babhalgaon (Rahuri Block), Padhegaon (Kopargaon Block) and Kakadi (Rahata Block). According to Ms. Richa Bagla, the district has taken up water conservation and water recharging activities on a wide scale. “JSA has been a vibrant movement and continues to get people’s participation in a big way. The large scale involvement of youth, women and children is especially heartwarming,” she said. The team observed that the fertile sugarcane belt of Ahmednagar is well irrigated, served by an extensive network of irrigation canals. Nonetheless, the region is water stressed owing to high exploitation of water leading to ground water depletion. This makes ‘water budgeting’ a necessary exercise which can then serve as a baseline for water conservation and designing recharging strategies for ground water. On their second visit, the JSA team has seen good flow of water in the water bodies, with the onset of monsoon season. Further, a variety of water conservation structures that have been built such as soak pits, trenches, bunds, etc., have ensured water percolation and water holding for recharge. However, this needs to be done on a regular basis as the farmers are keen, the JS said. .