Govt to fight for Pachauri

NEW DELHI: The government had full confidence in Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) chief RK Pachauri and would fight "any attempt to unseat him", environment minister Jairam Ramesh said on Monday.

"We are backing the IPCC chairman and will fight any attempt to unseat him," Ramesh said in the Rajya Sabha during question hour.

At the same time, Ramesh admitted that the IPCC's fourth assessment report suggesting Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035 was based on poorly substantiated estimates of recession.

"In drafting the paragraph on melting of glaciers, the clear and well established standards of evidence, required by the IPCC procedures, were not applied properly. India's objections to the report were upheld and we were vindicated," he said.

The IPCC has been facing flak since January when it was found that it had included an alarmist statement about the disappearance of Himalayan glaciers in its benchmark 2007 report.