NEW DELHI: Recognizing the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting from January 25-29, 2006 in Davos, as an opportunity for India to engage with the participants, Confederation of Indian Industry will launch its Project "India Everywhere" in Davos.

The participants from India comprise a cross-section of political, social and business leaders who would come together to deliver a single message to the global community- "India - the fastest growing free market democracy".

It is for the first time a high-powered partnership was formed to represent India at this forum, which includes senior representatives from Government - both from Central and States as well as key business leaders from different sectors. It is the largest delegation, in terms of size and diversity, with over 100 participants from India.

P. Chidambaram, Finance Minister of India; Kamal Nath, Minister of Commerce & Industry; Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission and Renuka Chowdhury, Minister of Tourism along with Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister, Delhi; Vasundara Raje, Chief Minister, Rajasthan and Oommen Chandy, Chief Minister, Kerala will lead the "Dream Team" from India at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum from 25th to 29th January in Davos.

The WEF's Annual Meeting in Davos is the most important business event in the world where over 2000 global leaders would be congregating to shape global, regional & industry agenda and to find solutions to the global challenges.

The Government team is joined by prominent Indian business leaders such as Y C Deveshwar, Chairman, ITC and President, CII; Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, & MD, Reliance Industries and co-chair of the WEF Annual Meeting; and Nandan Nilekani, CEO, President & Managing Director, Infosys Technologies,

The India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) and Ministry of Tourism are spearheading a focused communication campaign to enhance the Brand India "touch points" at Davos through special events and promotions. This includes an advertising campaign to position India as the 'fastest growing free market democracy'.

The 'India Everywhere' campaign intends to sharpen focus on the unique value proposition India offers to the world by ensuring a continued and sustained presence of India in major global events throughout 2006. Emphasizing the need for such an approach and the relevance of Davos, Y C Deveshwar, President, CII, said, "Every CEO needs to grasp the forces that are shaping the world. And the Davos meet is a quick way of engaging with the world community and all its diversities. You can bring home valuable lessons; it also helps you to benchmark yourself against your peers globally ...."

Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, 'India Everywhere' project, said, "I think that Davos today is widely recognized as the forum for global leaders to exchange ideas. As India becomes increasingly prominent in the global economic context, the World Economic Forum at Davos is the ideal place for us to project ourselves."

The 'India Everywhere' campaign is built on three pillars: India's vibrant democracy, growing market, and its promise of assured returns for global investors.