Nice [France], June 14 (ANI): At the inauguration of Bharat Innovates 2026, French President Emmanuel Macron declared that the Indo-French relationship has evolved beyond traditional diplomacy into a “deep reality.”Speaking alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Macron emphasised that India’s role as a global powerhouse is now central to France’s strategic, industrial, and academic vision for the 21st century.”Our partnerships have been transforming, and India has become a deep reality. We have to work to improve the situation, to come up with more decarbonised energy, and to continue cooperating in terms of research and observation to be able to have an open science,” said President Emmanuel Macron.Beyond the International Solar Alliance, the two nations are exploring nuclear energy cooperation, including Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), to ensure decarbonised power and energy self-reliance.”In terms of climate and energy, France and India innovate together to guarantee power, self-reliance, and to guarantee the COP21 promises. We are working together on projects today and tomorrow in technologies such as SMRs,” said Macron.He also highlighted the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), launched by Prime Minister Modi in 2019, which promotes the resilience of infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks.”We also installed the International Solar Alliance, one of the major stakeholders at the world level and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), allowing us to invest in many different countries and also what we can do to get into the nuclear energy realm. We are working together on projects today and tomorrow at Datapower Technologies, such as SMRs. Together we have to work to improve the situation, to come up with more decarbonated energy and to continue cooperating in terms of research and observation to be able to have an open science,” said Macron.EN DIRECT | Cérémonie d’ouverture de l’évènement Bharat Innovates à Nice par le Président @EmmanuelMacron et le Premier ministre @NarendraModi. https://t.co/GB1DvtCPcx— Élysée (@Elysee) June 14, 2026Building on the 2023 French-Indian campus in life sciences, Macron announced the launch of a new “health club” for cooperation. This includes partnerships between institutions like Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale (INSERM) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to combat microbial resistance, alongside new AI-driven research centres at AIIMS (Delhi) and Sorbonne University.”And in terms of health, it’s been shown in the recent videos that we have a very strong cooperation. In 2023, we launched the French Indian campus in life sciences and health, producing great outcomes in terms of research and shared knowledge. We are going to launch a health club for cooperation. We have health and national, and certainly Inserm (French National Institute of Health and Medical Research) and ICMR are already fighting against microbial resistance with an alliance of industries. And recently, in my latest visit to India, I opened the first research centres using AI in the major universities. AIIMS in partnership with Sorbonne University and IIT in Delhi,” he said.With over 60 years of collaboration, the focus is shifting to Earth observation. Macron highlighted the long-standing and evolving space partnership between India and France.”In the realm of aerospace, of course, obviously, our cooperation is strong, but we still have a lot to do. Many different startups present today have been cooperating for years. We work together. We’ve been doing it for more than 60 years and last February, we had to see the partnership with the French Space Agency (CNES) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for the observation of the Earth,” said the French President.He also highlighted TRISHNA (Thermal Infrared Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment) is an upcoming collaborative Earth-observation satellite between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the French space agency (CNES). It will deliver high-resolution thermal mapping of the Earth’s surface to monitor water cycles, crop stress, and evapotranspiration.”And the next satellite, Trishna, which is underway, is going to be launched in India next year, providing precise measures of the surface temperature of the world, improving our capacity to handle the water resources, be it in terms of space exploration, journeys in space and new constellations discovered, we have massive projects to pull together. And India will have a major role in the airspace global summit that will take place in September 2026 in Paris,” said Macron.He also focuses on the economic and academic “connective tissue” that holds the India-France strategic partnership together. Macron highlighted the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), a massive multi-modal connectivity project intended to link India to Europe via ship-to-rail transit networks, creating a more efficient and resilient trade route than traditional paths and a push for a Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement.”Our partnerships have been transforming, and the IMEC in India has become real, a deep reality and the development of our trade agreements between France and especially the EU and India that would go even further. And I would like to conclude by bringing up at the service of these partnerships and this ambition for the strengths of our human ties at the heart of our development,” he said.Regarding human capital and academic vision, Macron emphasised that high-level industrial deals will fail without strong “human ties.” France is aggressively trying to attract Indian talent. Setting a target of 30,000 Indian students by 2030 is a deliberate attempt to build a “future workforce” that is familiar with both French and Indian business cultures.He placed human capital at the centre of the agenda, pledging to reach 30,000 Indian students in France by 2030 and announcing a new National Centre for Excellence in Aeronautics in Kanpur. He also called for a strategic pivot for the 40-year-old CEFIPRA, urging the institute to evolve its focus to meet the demands of frontier technology and modern scientific research.”Macron acknowledged that while the institute was perfect for the last 40 years, it now needs to be retooled to focus on modern challenges like Artificial Intelligence, green hydrogen, and quantum computing.”There’s an agreement for the creation of a National Centre for Excellence on aeronautics in Kanpur, in Uttar Pradesh, and it is one of the illustrations. And we want to go further with the universities and research centres for our use, and we have the goal of having 30,000 Indian students by 2030. This objective is major, fundamental, and I would like to invite everyone here in the room to contribute to that and to go even further to welcome even more Indian students and to allow more French students and researchers to implement that ambition. And I would like to pay tribute to the French Indian Centre for the Promotion of Adversary Research, CEFIPRA, a visionary institute that celebrates its 40th anniversary, and the line is a major effort, but we still have to give them a new perspective, a stronger perspective,” he said.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reflecting on the event’s success, highlighted the economic attractiveness of India’s current growth trajectory.The conversations at Bharat Innovates 2026 in Nice were enriching and insightful.Engaged with investors and venture capital leaders on the immense opportunities India offers across innovation, technology, manufacturing and emerging sectors. India’s growth is powered by talent,… pic.twitter.com/kHqvORsCMA— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 14, 2026″The conversations at Bharat Innovates 2026 in Nice were enriching and insightful. Engaged with investors and venture capital leaders on the immense opportunities India offers across innovation, technology, manufacturing and emerging sectors. India’s growth is powered by talent, scale, stability and reform, making it an attractive destination for investment and innovation,” he said in a post on X. (ANI)(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)