KOLKATA: Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani on Friday met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and discussed various projects and issues relating to education in the state.
She, however, turned down the state government’s demand to increase the period of training for B.Ed students. State Education Minister Partha Chatterjee was also present at the meeting.
Irani is the third Union Minister to meet Mamata following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s instruction to his Cabinet colleagues to bury political differences and work for the development of the states.
Earlier, Union Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goel, and Union Minister of State for Petroleum Dharmendra Pradhan, met the Chief Minister at the state secretariat here and assured her of the Centre’s support. Irani, who speaks Bengali fluently, is said to be Modi’s point person to liaison with Mamata in future.