Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday took"delivery" of the first of the 36 Rafale fighter jets acquired fromDassault Aviation for the Indian Air Force in the French town of Bordeaux.While the formal handover ceremony has taken place, the first batch of four Rafale jets will fly to their home base in India only by May 2020.

At the handover ceremony, Singh called it a historic day for Indian forces, and a milestone moment for Indo-French bilateral ties as he impressed upon Dassault the need to maintain the delivery timeline. "I am happy that the delivery of Rafale is on schedule. The jet will add to the strength of our forces," he said.Singh said he believes Rafale will boost India's air dominance exponentially to ensure peace and security in the region."I am told Rafale is a French word meaning gust of wind. I am sure the aircraft will live up to its name," he said at the ceremony that was also attended by French defense minister Florence Parl.

The minister, who earlier held wide-ranging talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, said his visit was aimed at"expanding the strategic partnership" between India and France.

Singh took a tour of Rafale manufacturer Dassault Aviation's plant before a symbolic ribbon-cutting ceremony for the first Rafale combatjet.

The defence minister also performed a traditional Indian Shastra Puja, or weapons' worship which forms part of Dussehra celebrations and this year also marks Air Force Day - IAF's 87th anniversary. Singh is scheduledto fly a sortie in the Rafale jet following the Shastra Puja, which concludedwith the traditional breaking of a coconut before the new aircraft.

Members of the top military brass of France as well assenior officials of Dassault Aviation were present at the ceremony.India hadordered 36 Rafale fighter jets from France in a deal worth Rs 59,000 crore inSeptember 2016. The deal had sparked controversy last year, with the Congressaccusing the Modi government of buying the aircraft at nearly three times theprice being negotiated when it was the ruling party before BJP came to power in2014. The government had denied any wrongdoing.All 36 jets are expected toarrive in India by September 2022, for which the IAF has been reportedlyundertaking preparations, including readying required infrastructure andtraining of pilots.

The Rafale is a twin-jet fighter aircraft able to operatefrom both an aircraft carrier and a shore base. The manufacturers describe itas a fully versatile aircraft which can carry out all combat aviation missionsto achieve air superiority and air defence, close air support, in-depthstrikes, reconnaissance, anti-ship strikes and nuclear deterrence

"In the defence sector, the Indian Air Force (IAF) isour longest standing export customer and has been flying Dassault aircraftsince 1953. The acquisition contract for 36 Rafale signed in 2016 and themodernisation of the Mirage 2000 I/TI are a continuation of this historicpartnership," Dassault Aviation said in a statement.The Rafale jetsintended for India are expected to come with certain bespoke modifications forthe IAF and have been awaited as a crucial enhancement to India's MediumMulti-role Combat Aircraft fleet.The first Rafale jet will come with tailnumber RB 001, with RB denoting the initials of Air Chief Marshal RakeshBhadauria who played a key role in striking the deal for the jets in hisprevious role as IAF deputy chief.