Amid growing opposition to the proposed felling of more than 32,000 trees for a hydropower project in Raigad district, Maharashtra Forest Minister Ganesh Naik on Sunday said he was examining ways to preserve the maximum number of trees and undertake compensatory plantation, news agency PTI reported.

Speaking to reporters, Naik clarified that approval for Torrent Power's 3,000 MW Saidongar-I pumped storage project near the Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary in Karjat was granted before he took charge of the Forest Department. He added that he was currently reviewing the project's details.