MUMBAI, Nov. 12 -- Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday defended his government's decision to go ahead with a pumped-storage hydropower project in Karjat, despite widespread protests over the proposed felling of more than 32,000 trees in the ecologically sensitive Sahyadri range. He also backed the expansion of AI data centres in Maharashtra, dismissing concerns over their heavy water and power consumption, saying the government would insist that new facilities minimise their use of both resources. Responding to questions from journalists at Varsha, his official residence, during a Diwali get-together on Wednesday, Fadnavis said the projects are the need of the hour. He also underlined the importance of nuclear power as a source of clean and assured energy. The proposed 3,000-MW pumped-storage project, being developed by Torrent Power at Saidongar in Karjat, has triggered protests from local residents, environmentalists and opposition parties over the diversion of around 233 hectares of forest land and the proposed felling of 32,490 trees. Defending the project, Fadnavis said pumped-storage plants were a source of clean energy and would provide cheap power during peak-demand periods. "When power demand is low, solar power at the site will be used to pump water from the lower dam to the upper dam. So, the same amount of water will be used for the whole year to generate hydropower," he said. Fadnavis claimed that pumped-storage power projects would compensate for the environmental damage from tree cutting, and that the company would undertake afforestation to support the local ecosystem. Regarding opposition to AI data centres, Fadnavis attributed it to a misunderstanding of how such facilities operate. "Data centres are already operational in Mumbai, but no one is facing trouble. The government has assured that data centres in Thane and Navi Mumbai will use treated water and not fresh water. The government will insist on less power- and water-demanding data centres. But from the national security point of view, we should maintain our data, for which data centres are needed," he said. The remarks came amid growing opposition to large data centre projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Residents of Thane's Balkum, Majiwada and Dhokali areas have protested against a proposed Amazon data centre, citing concerns about its substantial electricity and water requirements and the additional pressure it could place on local infrastructure. Opposition leaders have also questioned the transparency of the project's clearances and its location in a densely populated residential area. Asked about Maharashtra's participation in the Centre's Nuclear Energy Mission, Fadnavis said the state government had already signed memorandums of understanding for setting up nuclear power plants. State-owned power generation company Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (Mahagenco) could also participate in nuclear power generation, he added. "The state will have both big nuclear power projects and small modular reactors (SMRs). We are looking at SMRs particularly because they require small plots of land. The state government recently sent a group to the US to study SMRs," he said. Fadnavis also dismissed fears about nuclear power projects, citing the Tarapur nuclear power plant in Palghar. "The Tarapur nuclear power plant has been working smoothly for more than four decades. Nothing has happened," he said. Fadnavis further said that the state government was increasing its share of renewable energy, including solar and wind power, but these sources had limitations in supplying 24x7 power. Nuclear power, on the other hand, is a source of clean energy and provides assured power continuously, including during peak demand periods, he said. "It's for the future, as it takes years of planning and completion of nuclear power projects," he added....