Chief minister Hemant Soren on Tuesday participated in the inauguration ceremony of the India Pavilion at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, which was also attended by representatives from the Central government and heads of various states, officials said.
Besides the India Pavilion, the CM also inaugurated the Jharkhand Pavilion at the venue. On the occasion, the CM said that Jharkhand is participating in this prestigious global forum for the first time, which is a moment of pride for the state.
“Jharkhand is a state rich in natural resources and is rapidly progressing in several development sectors, including green energy, which is reaffirming the goals of Developed India 2047 and Prosperous Jharkhand 2050,” the chief minister said.
The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) president further expressed confidence that the meaningful discussions held with global leaders, countries, and companies in Davos will give new momentum to the state’s development and investment efforts. The CM expressed his gratitude to all the participants in the programme and extended best wishes on behalf of Jharkhand.
White Badge conferred on Soren
{{/usCountry}}White Badge conferred on Soren
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, chief minister Hemant Soren also marked a historic milestone on Tuesday by becoming the first tribal elected leader from India to participate in the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting at Davos. As a recognition of his leadership and the transformative work being undertaken in Jharkhand and in sync with the established honour accorded to all heads of state, WEF representatives honoured the JMM president with the prestigious White Badge, officials said.
The White Badge is conferred upon select global leaders worldwide and grants uniform access to the WEF Congress Centre and all WEF exclusive events, making it one of the highest distinctions accorded by the World Economic Forum to heads of states and governments.
Delegation engages with Business leaders on sidelines
On the sidelines of the WEF meeting, the delegation led by the chief minister held important meetings with business leaders including Bharat Kaushal, Regional Head, Hitachi and Cecilia Oldne, Chief India Representative, Sweden–India Business Council, officials said.
During the meeting with Kaushal and senior representatives of Hitachi, the discussions focused on cooperation in the areas of power systems, power transmission, advanced infrastructure, and skill development.
“Hitachi representatives informed that the power systems of nine metro rail networks currently operating in India are managed by Hitachi, highlighting the company’s strong technological capabilities and experience in large-scale urban transport systems. They also shared that Hitachi has developed a dedicated digital dashboard for power electronics, and noted that Hitachi already has a centre in Dhanbad, reflecting its continued engagement with Jharkhand,” an official said.
During the meeting, Bharat Kaushal extended a formal invitation to the CM to visit Hitachi’s manufacturing unit. It was further proposed that joint meetings be organised during February–March with Hitachi’s manufacturing units in India and Jharkhand, along with other Japanese companies, to deliberate on short-term and long-term projects and identify concrete areas of collaboration.
During the courtesy meeting with Cecilia Oldne, the meeting focused on strengthening business cooperation between Jharkhand and Sweden. Cecilia Oldne expressed the Sweden–India Business Council’s keen interest in expanding trade and investment partnerships with Jharkhand and assured full cooperation in this regard, officials said.
“During the discussions, it was agreed that, building on the outcomes of this meeting in Davos and the engagements held during the chief minister’s visit to Sweden last year with companies such as Volvo and others, a dedicated roundtable meeting would be organised in April to take forward identified action points. The proposed roundtable will also deliberate on urban mobility, with a particular focus on financing solutions for urban transport,” an official said.