India, Oct. 27 -- The row over the state forest department's clearance to hack more than 32,000 trees in Karjat to make way for a hydroelectric project intensified on Monday, with Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray visiting the area and demanding that the state government disclose alternative sites for the project, and actor and activist Sayaji Shinde addressing a press conference, urging people across Maharashtra to unite against projects that threaten the environment.

Responding to concerns raised by protesters, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis stressed on the need for policy change to ensure that trees are planted in the same area or region where they are felled. He directed officials to prepare a Standard Operating Procedure (S...