Union ministers to business leaders, look who's heading to Davos

A host of world leaders and senior government officials will congregate at the snow-laden picturesque Swiss resort town Davos from 15 to 19 January, 2024 for the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF). From India, IT and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani are expected to attend Davos 2024 meeting. All the three Union ministers have attended the WEF meeting in Davos earlier also. Also, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah are expected to attend the annual meeting. Shinde was also in Davos in 2023 for the annual meeting and his state Maharashtra had one of the biggest pavilions there, while Siddaramaiah will be there to represent Karnataka. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das, India’s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant are also expected to be in Davos for the annual gathering. Some ministers from Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana may also attend the meeting. Over 100 Indian business leaders, including Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani, Kumar Mangalam Birla, N Chandrasekaran, Sajjan Jindal, Sunil Mittal, Rishad Premji and Adar Poonawalla are expected to attend WEF at Davos. Heads of at least three PSUs - State Bank of India (SBI), National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Indian Oil are also expected to attend WEF 2024 meeting. Several Indian companies will have their pavilions in the Alpine resort town, alongside those of various ministries and state governments in addition to a central India lounge, previously known as ‘India Adda’. The main programme of WEF Annual Meeting is expected to comprise some India-focused sessions while the government and business leaders from India would also hold their own side-events as well as bilateral meetings. Apart from Indian government officials and business leaders, more than 50 heads of states and governments from across the world are expected to attend the five-day annual WEF meeting, which describes itself as an international organisation for public private cooperation committed to improving the state of the world. WEF 2024 Theme The theme of the 54th WEF annual meet is ‘Rebuilding Trust’. This year WEF meet aims to restore collective agency, and reinforce the fundamental principles of transparency, consistency and accountability among leaders. With inputs from agencies