New Delhi:
French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in Bangalore on Saturday on the first leg of his four-day visit, during which he hopes to sign a mega nuclear deal with India and strengthen bilateral ties in key areas of space and civil nuclear cooperation.
Sarkozy is accompanied by his singer-model wife Carla Bruni and a high-level delegation, including several key ministers of his cabinet and senior officials.
(See Pics)Sarkozy, Carla Bruni and the delegation later drove to the nearby Leela Palace Hotel for a brief stay.
The highlight of his visit to the city will be his address to scientists at the India's space research agency ISRO on Saturday.
A deal for French nuclear reactors is likely to be on the top of the agenda and last minute negotiations are on to make a big announcement during the visit. The French are hoping to give pending defence deals a push.
Speaking to some Indian newspapers just before leaving for Bangalore, Sarkozy said he plans to take up India's nuclear liability law with the PM, saying he would like New Delhi to adopt rules and procedures that are consistent with international practices as laid down in the Vienna Convention.
During Sarkozy's visit to ISRO, the focus is expected to be on Indo-French space collaborative projects, the Megha Tropiques and SARAL.
Megha-Tropiques (Megha meaning cloud in Sanskrit and Tropiques in French meaning Tropics), being jointly developed by ISRO and French National Space Agency (CNES), is expected to be launched by 2011 to study tropical climate.
Another ISRO-CNES mission to be launched next year is SARAL (Satellite for Argos and Altika) for seasonal forecast, oceanography and climate studies.
Sarkozy is likely to have a brief interaction with top officials of ISRO, who are expected to take him on a short visit around the ISRO facility.
Carla Bruni is expected to spend time at the hotel on Saturday. A private trip to Agra is also planned on Sunday; this time Sarkozy will not be alone at the Taj Mahal.
On Monday, a delegation-level talks and a working lunch with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been planned in Delhi.
The French President will then head to Mumbai where he will visit the 26/11 police memorial in Mumbai. French bravery awards will be given to the staff of the Taj and Oberoi hotels for saving lives during the Mumbai attacks. During the attacks, many of the hotel guests were French.
A 50-member business delegation and a 100-member team of journalists from France have already arrived in India for the President's visit.