The first batch of five Rafale multirole fighter jets will be formally inducted into the Indian Air Force at 10 am in Ambala air base in Haryana, at a time when India is engaged in an escalating border row with China in eastern Ladakh. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, his French counterpart Florence Parly, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria and Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar will attend the ceremony. "The programme will include ceremonial unveiling of the Rafale aircraft, a traditional sarva dharma puja, air display by Rafale and Tejas aircraft as well as by the Sarang aerobatic team," an IAF spokesperson said, describing the ceremony as a "very important milestone" in the history of the Indian Air Force.
