India to buy 26 more Rafale jets, 3 Scorpene submarines from France: Report
Prime Minister Modi, who is the guest of honour at the Bastille Day Parade this year, will visit France on July 13 and 14.
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India is planning to buy 26 more Rafale fighter jets and three Scorpene class conventional submarines from France, the news agency ANI reported on Monday. The proposals by the defence forces have been placed before the Defence Ministry and are likely to be announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France this week, the agency said citing sources.
PM Modi, who is the guest of honour at the Bastille Day Parade this year, will visit France on July 13 and 14.
As per the proposals, the Indian Navy will get 22 single-seated Rafale Marine aircraft along with four trainer aircraft, the report said, adding that the Navy had been pressing for acquiring these aircraft and submarines as they have been facing shortages in view of the security challenges around the country.
The aircraft carriers INS Vikramaditya and Vikrant have been operating the MiG-29s and need the Rafales for operations on both carriers.
The three Scorpene class submarines would be acquired under the repeat clause by the Navy as part of Project 75 where they would be built in the Mazagon Dockyards Limited in Mumbai, the agency said.
The deals are estimated to be worth over Rs 90,000 crore (~11 bn USD) but the final cost would be clear only after the contract negotiations are completed which will be held after the deal is announced, the report said.
The proposals are likely to be placed before the defence acquisition council in the next few days and are expected to be accorded approval by the government before the announcement in France.
India has already got the delivery of 36 Rafales, for which it signed the deal in 2016. In 2016, India and France signed a Rs 59,000 crore deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets, equipped with the latest missiles and weapon systems besides multiple India-specific modifications.
In December last year, the 36th jet arrived in India. In a tweet, the Indian Air Force said: "'The Pack is Complete'. The last of the 36 IAF Rafales landed in India after a quick enroute sip from a UAE Air Force tanker."