In PHOTOS: When PM, Mamata came face to face

After giving the dinner hosted by Dr Manmohan Singh on the occasion of the third anniversary of the United Progressive Alliance-II in New Delhi a skip and strongly protesting against the petrol hike, West Bengal Chief Minister shared the stage with the prime minister at a function in Kolkata.

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Dr Singh and the Trinamool Congress chief the Science Congress at the Kolkata University on Saturday.

The PM is in Kolkata for the opening of the centenary year of the Indian Science Congress.

Banerjee was seen smiling as the PM lit a diya at the function and the two were caught chatting candidly. She listened intently as Dr Singh delivered a speech. 

Speaking at the inception ceremony as a general president of the Indian Science Congress Association, he said the theme for the Congress in the city next year would be 'Science for Shaping Future of India'.

"It is a theme that might have resonated just as well a 100 years ago when the association came into being," Dr Singh said.

"I would signal the full support and commitment of the government to Indian science as it passed through a critical decade of innovation," he said at the function held at the Calcutta University. "Our problems are overwhelming and need scientific solutions," he said.

"We have to use our abundant intellectual resources to find new pathways of development that use our scarce natural resources judiciously."

The prime minister said, "We did not use science and technology in our development processes as much as we should have. We did not build local capacities that could meaningfully address problems of development in a decentralised manner using this knowledge."

As part of centenary year celebrations, there would be the annual session in Kolkata and three regional science congresses in the north, west and south of the country, Dr Singh said.

"We will organise special sessions on the use of high technology, renewable energy and public health challenges like malnutrition," the PM said adding, "we will emphasise themes that relate science to integrated rural development in the country."

The PM said that a well-researched publication on 100 high impact-making discoveries in Indian science during the last 100 years will be brought out.

"We will also launch a hall of fame in cyberspace to portray globally the contribution of Indian science," Dr Singh said.

"Keeping in mind our obligation to promote science internationally and in our own region, we propose to introduce a scheme to invite 25 young scientists from our neighbouring countries to undertake doctoral research in India," he said adding, "the department of science and technology will work out appropriate arrangements."

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