On Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave French President Emmanuel Macron, the guest of honor at the National Day celebrations, a massive reception on the first day of his visit to India, where crowds stretched over a kilometer and some of them sprayed his motorcade with flowers.
Modi and Macron greeted the crowds as they slowly passed in a carriage, down an avenue leading to the Palace of Winds, an architectural masterpiece in the heart of Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan state, and to a 19th-century palace where they had dinner.
Thousands of Indians, who gathered behind barriers erected on the roads, chanted, “Modi, Modi,” and Macron also gave a long greeting to the crowds.
The French President will be the guest of honor in India on the occasion of the Indian Constitution Day, which came into force on January 26, 1950, two years after the country's independence.
The Indian Prime Minister was the guest of honor during the National Day military ceremonies in France on July 14, and he returned the favor to his French guest six months later.
The French presidency revealed that “this visit would strengthen and deepen French-Indian diplomatic and economic relations and strengthen ties between the two civil societies.”
Macron visited a fort overlooking Jaipur, where he was received by Princess Diya Kumari, Vice President and Chief Official of Rajasthan.
He was greeted with applause by enthusiastic students waving the flags of the two countries.
Macron, who wrapped a necklace of red roses around his neck, told the press, “We want 30,000 (Indian) students for the year 2030 and we must move forward. We want more Indian students in France.”
During a conversation with about thirty students, Macron praised the advantages of Francophonie, saying, “France is a wonderful gateway to Europe, and I believe that India is a country that understands us better than many others in the region.”
In evidence of bilateral space cooperation, Modi and Macron toured an 18th-century astronomical observatory.
Modi, who aspires to make his country a major space power with the first manned flight into space by 2025, exchanged conversations with French astronaut Thomas Pasquet.
On Friday morning, Modi and Macron attended the major military parade together in New Delhi, to the sound of 21 artillery shots, after Emmanuel Macron ascended the podium of honor in a horse-drawn carriage.
The military ceremony includes the participation of a battalion of 150 soldiers, two Rafale fighter jets, and a French supply plane, in addition to Indian military vehicles and knights on camels.
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