Vajpayee to attend Davos economic meet in Jan

Former Prime Minister I K Gujral gave Davos a miss in 1998 as his government was a caretaker one when the meet rolled round. Vajpayee skipped it the next year at a time of intense political instability, his government buffeted by his swadeshi opponents from within and Jayalalitha and the Congress from without.

Now, armed with a comfortable electoral mandate for the reforms-friendly agenda of the National Democratic Alliance, Vajpayee is ready to make a serious pitch for increased foreign investment in India.

The tone for his address at Davos was set first at the FICCI meeting last month and later at the IndiaMeet of the WEF in Delhi earlier this month. In both speeches, Vajpayee emphasised his government’s commitment to speeding up the pace of reforms and outlined the priority areas for foreign investment with Information Technology clearly marked as his special baby.

The Government is hoping that the visit will spark fresh interest in India as an investment destination, more so in the light of its success in pushing through vital reforms-related legislative measures such as the Insurance Regulatory Authority Act. The IRA Bill, FEMA and the Money Laundering Bill were passed by Parliament in the ongoing winter session. Parliament is also expected to clear several WTO-related Bills which have been pending for several years.

Interestingly, Vajpayee is likely to be backed in his hardsell effort at Davos by two market-friendly Chief Ministers who are currently competing with each other for foreign investment in their respective States. Both Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and Karnataka ChiefMinister S M Krishna are expected to attend the meet.

This will be Naidu’s second appearance at Davos. He was invited for the 1999 meet earlier this year. For Krishna, who became Chief Minister only two months ago, it will be a maiden showing.

PM urged to release population policy draft
Members of Parliament, cutting across party lines, today appealed to Prime Minister Vajpayee to release the final draft of the national population policy for discussion before it is placed in Parliament.

The move, seeking to making the document public, was initiated by film star-politician Shabana Azmi, United Nations’ goodwill ambassador on population and development, who said it was one of the most important policies for the country.

The memorandum signed by about 108 members, included former finance minister Manmohan Singh, BJP leader K R Malkani, Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, TMC leader Jayanti Natarajan, TDP member Jaya Prada, Bharti Ray (CPM), Rajiv Pratap Rudi (BJP) and Rajesh Pilot (Congress).