HIMALAYAN GLACIERS UNAFFECTED BY CLIMATE CHANGE, SAY INDIAN EXPERTS

By P.VIJIAN

NEW DELHI, Nov 9 (Bernama) -- Government-backed Indian glaciologists Monday
claim that the Himalayan glaciers are not impacted by global warming, a
startling finding, that opposes western scientists study that the snow-cover is
receding quickly in the mountainous region of north India.

"It is premature to make a statement that glaciers in the Himalayas are
retreating abnormally because of the global warming," said a report on
"Himalayan Glaciers: A State-of-Art Review of Glacial Studies, Glacial Retreat
and Climate Change."

The recent study, commissioned by the Ministry of Environment and Forests,
however acknowledged that glaciers in the region were shrinking but it could
not be associated to climate change.

"There is no conclusive scientific evidence to demonstrate that global
warming or black carbon was causing the retreating of Himalayan glaciers," its
minister Jairam Ramesh told the media after releasing the report in Delhi.

The new finding is likely to stir intense debate among local and
international scientists, especially the InterGovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC).

The IPCC, a United Nations agency, had earlier warned that the Himalayan
glaciers were receding faster compared to other parts of the world, like in the
Artic region, and could totally disappear by 2035 if current global warming
patterns remain.

"We cannot compare Artic and the Himalayan glaciers because the Himalayan
glaciers are at very high altitude while the Artic are at sea level.

"This report is challenging the conventional wisdom, challenging the IPCC
and other doomsayers.

"We should de- politicise the glasier issue by bringing in modern science.
It is becoming a political issue rather than a scientific issue," Jairam added.
-- BERNAMA