India should bring out more studies on climate change: Ramesh

Updated on: Friday, June 10, 2011

Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said that India should carry out more scientific studies on climate change independently and not allow to Western scientists to take the initiative as they have "more politics and less science on their mind".

Speaking after the release of 'Discussion paper on Snow and Glaciers of Himalayas' prepared by Space Application Centre (SAC), a part of ISRO, Ramesh said, "There is no alternative to our science, as science is politics in climate change.

"We should have more and more studies by our scientists on climate change and they should be published or else, we will be led by our noses by Western scientists, who has less science on their mind and more politics."

Ramesh made these statements referring to the controversy over report of Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), led by R K Pachauri, which said that Himalayan glaciers will melt in the next few years.

"At that time (when IPCC had declared that Himalayan glaciers will melt fast) also, I had said three points - most Himalayan glaciers are retreating, some are advancing and rate of retreat glaciers is also slowing," Ramesh said.

"Now, this study paper prepared by the SAC says 75 per cent of Himalayan glaciers are retreating, eight per cent are advancing and 17 per cent are stable," he said.

"This means that the rate of melting of glaciers is not as fast as if they would entirely disappear in 2035 as said by that study. They will be there for many more years."

India should bring out more studies on climate change: Ramesh

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