Faced with the spectre of receding Himalayan glaciers wreaking havoc with regional ecology, India has taken up the issue with China for a joint solution to the problem of climatic change, the Rajya Sabha has been informed on Thursday.

“I had raised the issue with Chinese President Hu Jintao and it was agreed that there should be more discussions on modalities,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said.

He said the melting of glaciers was an important issue because it could have a “catastrophic effect” on the ecology of not only the region but also the world.

According to the Working Group-II of the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change, the Himalayan glaciers are receding faster than any other glacier in the world.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences has found rapid melting of glaciers of the Tibetan Plateau.