Eminent scientist C N R Rao on Thursday lashed out at the state government for its lack of enthusiasm in participating in the 5th Edition of Bangalore Nano.
The annual conference seeks to showcase developments in the field of nanotechnology and Professor Rao accused the government of having “made it a tradition” of ignoring the show.
“If the chief minister could not have made it due to the ongoing Assembly session, at least the science minister could have come. I must record my displeasure,” said the scientist.
In his address, Professor Rao said while the state was at the forefront in promoting science and technology through vision groups and other means, nanotechnology was not being promoted enough.
“There are too many normal people around, we need a bunch of crazy nuts to put energy into innovation. There is money to promote science in this country,” he said.
Also speaking at the inaugural, Planning Commission Member K Kasturirangan said that in the upcoming 12th Five Year Plan, there will be a push for greater participation from the private sector.
“The government is ready to increase the budget for science and technology from 0.9 per cent to 1 per cent of GDP provided that this sum is matched by private players. We need to increase our investment in research as we are set to become one of the world’s largest economies,” he said.
The two-day Bangalore Nano is organised by the Department of Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka and will have inputs from top scientists and industry professionals working in the field of nanotechnology.