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New Delhi, Aug 26 (UNI) After having taken on critics of the US-India nuclear deal in Parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today held detailed discussions with members of the Atomic Energy Commission as well as scientists who have shaped the nuclear programme in the past.

Dr Singh met a high-power AEC delegation led by the Commission's chairman and Department of Atomic Energy secretary Anil Kakodkar this morning. The Prime Minister, who has himself been a member of AEC listened to India's top nuclear scientists and managers and assured them that there was no devil in the fineprint of the deal.

Prof C N R Rao, Dr M R Srinivasan, Dr Rama Rao and Dr S Banerjee were among the scientists who attended the meeting. Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Prithviraj Chavan and Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi assisted the Prime Minister.

In the evening, he will meet scientists who previously headed crucial missions and institutions involved in India's civil and military programmes.

UNI PMD SB HS1418