India, Feb. 22 -- State environment minister Pankaja Munde has come under sharp criticism after comparing the felling of trees, including mangroves, for infrastructure projects to the sacrifice of soldiers guarding the nation's borders.

The controversy erupted after a video of her remarks at Mumbai Climate Week went viral on social media.

Speaking at an interaction during the event, Munde defended the rationale behind cutting trees for development projects.

"The way a mother raises her son and then has the courage to send him to the border to fight for the country, similarly, if we grow trees, we may have to cut them, but we can plant them somewhere else," she said.

"You cannot say no to progress because we have to preserve trees," th...