Maharashtra witnessed an increase of 432 sq km in the water catchment areas in forests in two years thanks to the Jalyukt Shivar water conservation programme, senior minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said today.
The Indian Forest Survey Report 2017, released recently, notes this increase, he said.
The total water catchment area in state's forests was 1,116 sq km as per the 2015 report, which increased to 1,548 sq km in 2017, the forest minister said.
This increase happened due to the Jalyukt Shivar and other water conservation works undertaken by the Forest Department, he said.
Between 2014-15 and 2016-17, the department approved 33,747 water conservation-related works, of which 28,741 projects were completed, he said.