Jan 19 news LIVE: Oxfam cites Indian reservations in Davos as example of democratised power
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- 19 Jan 2026 8:43 AM IST
Davos: Oxfam cites Indian reservations as example of how to democratise power
As it flagged billionaires usurping the political landscape globally, rights group Oxfam on Monday (January 19) cited India’s reservation system as a “compelling” example of progress on how ordinary people can be politically empowered.
In its annual inequality report released in Davos on the first day of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, attended by rich and powerful from across the world, Oxfam International said billionaires are 4,000 times more likely to hold political office than ordinary citizens.
Making a case for building “the power of the many”, Oxfam said ordinary people become powerful in a political system where political, institutional, and social conditions increase their capacity to influence decision-making despite structural inequality.
“This happens when institutional inclusiveness, political incentives for responsiveness, collective organisation, effective governance and ideological commitments align.
“Non-state actors such as CSOs, grassroots movements and trade unions are natural allies of states in building greater political engagement from under-represented communities, and ensuring access for all to meaningful participation in policymaking,” Oxfam said in the report, titled Resisting the Rule of the Rich: Protecting Freedom from Billionaire Power.
It said there are some compelling examples of progress on this crucial issue.
“In India, for example, political reservations (quotas) for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other marginalised groups create opportunities for economically disadvantaged and socially excluded communities to gain legislative representation and push redistributive policies,” Oxfam said.
Oxfam also cited the example of Brazil’s Participatory Budgeting that emerged in the 1990s and saw significant expansion during the 2000s.
- 19 Jan 2026 8:31 AM IST
China's economy grows 5 pc in 2025 despite Trump tariffs, thanks to strong exports
China’s economy expanded at a 5 per cent annual pace in 2025, buoyed by strong exports despite Trump’s tariffs.
However, growth slowed to 4.5 per cent in the last quarter of the year, the government said on Monday (January 19). That was the slowest quarterly growth since late 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The economy, the world’s second largest, grew at a 4.8 per cent annual pace in the previous quarter.
Strong exports helped compensate for weak consumer spending and business investment, contributing to a record trade surplus of USD 1.2 trillion.
- 19 Jan 2026 7:19 AM IST
Kukis demand justice for woman who died 2 years after gang rape
Various organisations have demanded justice for a Kuki woman from Manipur who died recently from illness allegedly linked to the trauma she suffered after being gang-raped during the early phase of the ethnic violence in the state in 2023.The Kuki organisations based in Manipur’s Churachandpur and Delhi claimed that she was kidnapped in Imphal and gang-raped in May 2023. She, however, escaped from the kidnappers, but never fully recovered from the shock and injuries and died on January 10 while undergoing treatment in Guwahati.The groups also demanded a separate administration for the Kukis, claiming that it was not possible for them to live together with the Meitei community. - 19 Jan 2026 7:13 AM IST
High-speed trains collide after one derails in Spain, killing at least 21
A high-speed train derailed, jumped on to the track in the opposite direction and slammed into an oncoming train in southern Spain on Sunday (January 18), killing at least 21 people and injuring dozens more, the country's transport minister said.The tail end of an evening train between Malaga and Madrid with some 300 passengers went off the rails near Cordoba at 7.45 pm local time and slammed into a train with some 200 passengers coming from Madrid to Huelva, another southern Spanish city.Spain's Transport Minister Oscar Puente updated the death toll to 21 confirmed victims after midnight when he said that rescues had removed all the survivors. But Puente said there could be more victims still to be confirmed.Puente said the causes of the crash were unknown. He called it “a truly strange” incident because it happened on a flat stretch of track that had been renovated in May. - 19 Jan 2026 7:11 AM IST
Verified 3,919 deaths from Iran protests, says US-based activist agency
A US-based activist agency said Sunday (January 18) it has verified at least 3,919 deaths during a wave of protests that swept Iran and led to a bloody crackdown, and fears the number could be significantly higher.The Human Rights Activists News Agency posted the revised figure, up from the previous toll of 3,308. The death toll exceeds that of any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades, and recalls the chaos surrounding the 1979 revolution.The agency has been accurate throughout the years of demonstrations in Iran, relying on a network of activists inside the country that confirms all reported fatalities.Iranian officials have not given a clear death toll, although on Saturday, the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the protests had left “several thousand” people dead — and blamed the United States for the deaths.It was the first indication from an Iranian leader of the extent of the casualties from the wave of protests that began December 28 over Iran's ailing economy.The Human Rights Activists News Agency says 24,669 protesters have been arrested in the crackdown. - 19 Jan 2026 7:09 AM IST
9 killed, 80 injured after bus overturns in Jharkhand
At least nine people, including five women, were killed and over 80 injured after a bus carrying wedding guests overturned in Jharkhand's Latehar district on Sunday (January 18).The accident occurred at Orsa Bangladara valley under Mahuadanr police station limits.Two persons died during treatment in Latehar hospital, while two in Gumla Sadar hospital.According to Gumla civil surgeon Shambhu Nath Choudhary, nine injured were referred to the Sadar hospital, of which two were brought dead. - 19 Jan 2026 7:07 AM IST
Trump invites India to be part of Board of Peace for Gaza
India has been invited by US President Donald Trump to be part of the Board of Peace for Gaza along with other global partners, news agency PTI quoted official sources as saying on Sunday (January 18).
Trump’s Board of Peace is being projected by Washington as a new international body to usher in peace and stability in Gaza and beyond, triggering speculation that it may respond to other global conflicts as well.
Hungary, Jordan, Greece, Cyprus and Pakistan also said Sunday they had received invitations. Canada, Turkiye, Egypt, Paraguay, Argentina and Albania have already said they were invited. It was not clear how many have been invited in all.
The US is expected to announce its official list of members in the coming days, likely during the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
