Saraswati Sevabhavi Sanstha Bhatwadgaon

To develop a context-appropriate plan for execution, the watershed development approach relies on participatory planning that follows a bottom-up approach. It also empowers and employs people through the establishment and strengthening of local-level institutions, conserves natural resources through the holistic development of the watershed, and promotes sustainability through volunteerism, people's participation in the process of development, and the formulation and adoption of a withdrawal strategy for the project's post-project sustainability. The key to the longevity of the community-based participatory watershed development project is the strong sense of ownership that the villagers have because they generate and maintain the assets.

The project is underway in 47 villages across three regions of the country, to give rural communities effective empowerment in the management of their natural resources. With the active involvement of the local populations, several micro projects (dikes, tiny dams, wells, women's vegetable gardens, and nurseries of indigenous tree species) are underway.