TMC minister claims ISRO scientists not getting salaries regularly

Kolkata: West Bengal minister Aroop Biswas on Friday cited media reports to claim in the assembly that ISRO scientists, who have made the nation proud with the successful Moon mission, are not getting salaries regularly for the last 17 months.

The comment drew a sharp retort from the opposition BJP which dubbed it a “cheap political stunt.”

Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee declined to allow a discussion on the topic.

“The scientists of ISRO not only made the country proud but have also shown that India can be the guiding light in science exploration. But the way the Centre is treating the scientists is not right. The scientists are our assets and have not been getting their salaries regularly for the last 17 months. There have been several media reports about it,” the state power minister said.

He asserted that the central government has curtailed the budget of ISRO and for science exploration and research.

“The central government should encourage scientific and technological advancements. But they are not doing so. This is not good for the progress of our country,” he said.

Speaker Banerjee intervened and said he could not allow any discussion on this topic as it was unrelated to the house business.

Later, while talking to reporters, BJP Chief Whip Manoj Tigga dubbed the allegations as ” baseless and figment of imagination”.

“How can such a statement be made in the assembly based on media reports? He couldn’t furnish any facts or figures. He made those statements to gain some political mileage. This is nothing but a cheap political stunt,” he said.

Scripting history, India’s spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 touched down on the uncharted South Pole of the Moon for the time in the world on Wednesday evening. The country also entered an elite club of countries that achieved soft landing on the Moon after the US, the erstwhile Soviet Union and China.