DELHI: India and France on Friday unveiled an ambitious industrial roadmap to co-develop critical military hardware and firmed up a space situational awareness programme even as the Tata Group and Airbus agreed to jointly build H125 helicopters following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron.Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, announcing the outcomes of Thursday’s Modi-Macron talks in Jaipur, said a scheme for exchange of professionals in the age bracket of 18 to 35 years and activation of Schengen visas with a five-year validity for Indian postgraduate alumni were among other key decisions.The two sides signed several crucial agreements including one on defence-space partnership, another on satellite launches besides a separate one on boosting cooperation in the healthcare sector.At a media briefing, Kwatra said both sides deliberated on various aspects to advance civil-nuclear energy cooperation and that there was a “very positive, forward-leaning” ongoing conversation on small modular reactors (SMRs).Modi and Macron also delved into the situation in the Red Sea and the “potential disruptions” that it can trigger, besides exchanging views on the conflict in Gaza, he said.There was no announcement on India’s proposed procurement of 26 naval variants of Rafale jets and three Scorpene submarines from France as it is understood that price negotiations for the multi-billion dollar deals are still underway.The French president began his two-day visit to India from Jaipur and was the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in Delhi on Friday.
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