India is expected to seal a deal for the procurement of 26 naval variant of Rafale jets and three Scorpene submarines from France in the next few weeks in a bid to crank up its defence capabilities.
It is not immediately clear if the procurement will be announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris next month to attend a summit on artificial intelligence. PM Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to hold bilateral talks on the sideline of the summit, being held on February 10 and 11.
Citing sources, news agency PTI said the two deals are in the final stage of finalisation and that the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) will have to look at them.
In July 2023, the defence ministry approved the purchase of 22 Rafale (marine) jets from France, primarily for deployment on board the indigenously built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. The ministry had also cleared the procurement of three Scorpene submarines from France.
Under the Indian Navy's Project 75, six Scorpene submarines have already been constructed in India by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in cooperation with the Naval Group of France.
The procurement of the Rafale (M) jets along with associated ancillary equipment including weapon systems and spares would be based on an inter-governmental agreement.
The Indian Air Force bought 36 Rafale fighter aircraft in fly-away condition. IAF believes that it should go for at least two more squadrons of the Rafale jets.
