Himalayan glacier meltdown: Pachauri says won't resign over one mistake

New Delhi, Mar. 15 (ANI): The UN International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) chairman, Dr R K Pachauri, today said that he would not resign over what he called "one mistake" reported in the IPCC report.

Accepting that he and his team had erred in declaring a complete meltdown of the Himalayan glaciers by the year 2035, Pachauri said "just one mistake wasn't grounds enough for him to resign."

"There is no 'several mistakes'. There is only one mistake. Why should I resign? I have no reason to resign. I have a task to complete and I will finish it," he said adding that it was he who had asked for the probe into the blunders reported in the IPCC report.

Regarding the recent resignation of Boer from his UNFCC post last week, Pachauri said: "That's his decision, what can I say about it?"

The United Nations has launched an independent review of the IPCC, which has come under much criticism in recent months after it said wrongly claimed that the Himalayan glaciers would melt away by 2035. The error has also been attributed to a typographical error with the words 2035 appearing instead of 2350.

The review is being conducted by the InterAcademy Council, independently of the United Nations. The InterAcademy Council (IAC) is a multinational organisation of science academies crated to produce reports on scientific, technological and health issues.

According to a private television report, Pachauri had earlier stated that the IAC will only look at IPPC procedures and implementation in the preparation of reports, steering clear of any inquiry into the science of climate change - something he believes is well within the competency of scientists at IPCC. (ANI)