France’s Hollande views Indian Republic Day parade

The national capital was enveloped in multi-layer security for the main event at Rajpath, which was attended by President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the guest of the honour French President Francois Hollande.

India’s military prowess and achievements in different fields, state-of-the-art defence, diverse cultural and social traditions and the government’s emphasis on self-reliance and indigenisation will be showcased at the Rajpath on the country’s 67th Republic Day today.

“Dassault Aviation is very pleased with this progress, and is actively supporting French authorities in their efforts to finalize a complete agreement within the next four weeks”, the company said in a statement from Saint Cloud in France. The inter-governmental agreement has been finalized.

Modi has said he invited Hollande to India as a show of solidarity after the assault on the French capital, which killed 130 people and evoked memories of the even deadlier 2008 Islamist attacks on Mumbai.

French President, Francois Hollande who is on a three-day visit to India as the chief guest for 2016 Republic Day Parade was accorded a ceremonial Reception at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Monday.

The two sides said they had not yet arrived at an agreement on the price, which experts say could reach around €5 billion (RM23.23 billion).

During a press conference, Hollande was reported by IANS saying that “I have visited India to strengthen the reinforce the co-operation and security against all kinds of terrorist threats prevailing as of now in both the countries”. In earlier instances, intelligence agencies from some Arab states have also provided useful inputs in India’s battle against terrorism.

The mood on Tuesday was more celebratory, with Modi – sporting a gold turban that rivalled the spectacular military headgear on display – and Hollande chatting as they sat side by side in a bulletproof glass enclosure.

Hollande’s visit is seen as a signal of growing political and strategic ties between the two countries.

“From nuclear cooperation to railway locomotives, we are sowing the seeds of an ever-tightening web of cooperation between our two countries, ” Modi said. Hollande said an agreement for France’s Areva to build six nuclear reactors in India should be concluded within a year. Because as we know that the French Soldiers and other foreign troops will march with Indian troops on Rajpath at New Delhi.