PUNE: The number of villages and hamlets in the state facing water and fodder scarcity has increased by 850 after the first week of February.

In the first week of February, 5,294 villages and hamlets were facing severe water scarcity. The number has now increased to 6,153. The number of tankers supplying drinking water to villages and hamlets has also increased from 1,730 in the first week of February to 2,136 by the first week of March, said a senior revenue officer.