India expects to finalise an agreement with China for studies in glaciology soon, said the Environment Minister, Mr Jairam Ramesh, today. Speaking at the Asian Corporate Conference, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Asia Society, Mr. Ramesh noted that China was following India's stand in climate change negotiation.

Citing a recent example, Mr. Ramesh said “India and China were the only two countries that had not formally associated themselves with the Copenhagen Accord. India associated itself and less than 24 hours later China associated itself.” Stating that shrinking glaciers was a big area of cooperation, Mr. Ramesh said that an agreement between the two neighbours on cooperation in the field of glaciology would be reached in the next couple of weeks.

“India cannot come to grips with what is happening in its glacial eco-system without getting China in on a larger programme based on cooperation. At some stage Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan (all countries in the Himalayan belt) will also form a part of it; but China is more important. “All this has great impetus because we have had cooperation in the area of climate change,” he said. Exuding confidence that India could cut emission intensity by more than the promised 20-25 per cent, Mr Ramesh said it would be mainly due to the increasing investments in green technology. “The rate at which investments were being made in clean technology gives me enormous confidence that these targets will be met,” Mr Ramesh said.