WEF eager to know Modi’s mission for India

Davos/New Delhi:  The World Economic Forum 2018 has begun at Davos in Switzerland and it holds special significance for India as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend Davos meeting in about 20 years since HD Deve Gowda in 1997.  

During his 24-hour visit, the Prime Minister will host dinner for CEOs from across the world, 20 of Indian companies and 40 from elsewhere. He will also interact with 120 members of World Economic Forum's international business community. 

On his agenda is a bilateral meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset. The theme of this year's meeting is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. Modi is expected to talk about his experience with 'cooperative federalism' in India, while urging the world for a collective crackdown on terrorism, economic imbalances, cyber threats, among other social issues. 

The Prime Minister is also expected to convince the global leaders on the steps taken by his government to make it easier to do business with India, check corruption, clamp down on black money, streamline taxation and boost sustainable growth.     

Overall, the focus of his talk would be making of 'a new, young and innovative India'. Accompanying the Prime Minister will be six Union ministers - Arun Jaitley, Suresh Prabhu, Piyush Goyal, Dharmendra Pradhan, MJ Akbar and Jitendra Singh. Nearly, 130 Indian CEOs will attend the annual event that will see over 2,000 business leaders and 70 heads of state and governments.  

The Indian delegation, led by industry body Confederation of Indian industry, will have top industrialists like Mukesh Ambani, N Chandrasekaran, Gautam Adani, Azim Premji, Rahul Bajaj, Chanda Kochhar, Uday Kotak and Ajay Singh. Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan will also be there.  

India will also host yoga training sessions for the entire duration of the meeting and showcase Indian heritage and culture in Davos. The annual meeting will continue till January 26.