The unsubstantiated Himalayan-glacier melt figures contained in a supposedly authoritative 2007 IPCC report on climate warming were used intentionally — despite the report’s lead author, Murari Lal, knowing there were no data to back them up.

“Lal last night admitted [the scary figure] was included purely to put political pressure on world leaders,” The Sunday Mail article reported.

See Climate Change Authority Admits Mistake

The Telegraph also reports: “The scientist from whom this claim originated, Dr Syed Hasnain, has for the past two years been working as a senior employee of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), the Delhi-based company of which [IPCC chairman] Dr. Pachauri is director-general. Furthermore, the claim … has helped TERI to win a substantial share of a $500,000 grant from one of America’s leading charities, along with a share in a three million euro research study funded by the EU.”