At GEAC dinner,Jairam skips Bt,takes swipe at foreign univ Bill

But there was absolutely no mention of Bt brinjal at todays dinner, said a GEAC member who attended the dinner.

This was very surprising since many of us had come from outside Delhi to attend the meeting. What was the point of the dinner?

At least three GEAC members echoed this.

They said that instead of Bt brinjal,Ramesh discussed the Indian education system,Indian culture,the Womens Bill and took a swipe at the foreign universities Bill passed by the Cabinet yesterday.

The Minister said he was apprehensive about the Bill since it would drive away the best teachers to foreign universities here which would not have the same standards as their parent institutions, said another GEAC member.

Ramesh didnt respond to phone calls and a text message.

Incidentally,HRD minister Kapil Sibal while making it clear that he was not targeting any specific decision had said that on issues such as Bt brinjal,we have to trust our scientists and accept their advice on scientific issues.

Later,the Prime Minister had to convene a meeting of Ramesh,Sibal,Samp;T Minister Prithviraj Chavan and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to reconcile their differences on the issue. Chavan was also present at tonights dinner.