NEW DELHI, February 10: A controversy over an Indo-US agreement signed two months ago on transfer of Insat satellite weather data raised more dust today with the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) expelling press reporters from a conference that began here to discuss projects to be taken up under the agreement.In an unprecedented move IMD director general RR Kelkar asked reporters to leave amidst protests. An IMD spokesman declined to answer questions whether the discussions were secret.
Under the agreement signed in Washington in December last, India is to provide Insat data to the US on a "near real-time basis" as the data reaches IMD. The IMD has refused to make the agreement public.
Although the US has been demanding this data for 13 years, successive governments had been refusing to do so on the advice of defence scientists who considered some of the weather and ocean data would be militarily sensitive.
After the formal inauguration by Science minister Yogendra Alagh, the press persons hadstayed back to listen to speeches by US scientists on the topic "US-India science cooperation".
When asked, Department of Science and Technology (DST) secretary VS Ramamurthi said he would investigate.
"I see no reason why the meeting was closed to the press. It is an academic meeting and no policy making is involved."
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
