Hawk contract, cultural deal on anvil during UK prime minister's India trip

A £500 million deal for BAE systems, Britain's biggest defence contractor, to supply Hawk jet trainers is expected to be among a string of high-profile contracts to be signed during prime minister David Cameron's two-day visit to India commencing on Wednesday.

There is also likely to be a major cultural agreement involving museums, 'The Observer' reported today.

Cameron is taking with him seven Cabinet ministers and a huge trade delegation, including representatives from BAE as well as from Rolls-Royce, Standard Chartered Bank, construction group Balfour Beatty and the British Museum.

BAE has set up joint ventures with the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics in Bangalore. The Indian group makes BAE's Hawk trainer aircraft under licence.

Dick Olver, BAE's chairman, said British business needed to think about India becoming as important a trading partner as America. "We need to build a second special relationship."

According to the Sunday Telegraph, BAE Systems will announce a 500 million-pound deal to build 57 Hawk trainer jets in collaboration with their Indian partners HAL near Bangalore, as a centrepiece of Cameron's visit.

Cameron, who will first fly to Bangalore, the hub of "infotech" and innovation, will visit along with business secretary Vince Cable and climate change minister Greg Barker the headquarters of Infosys, the cutting edge IT firm based in the city.

Cameron is expected to make a keynote speech there calling for an "aspirational partnership" between Britain and India.

George Osborne, the Chancellor of Exchequer, will visit Mumbai, the financial capital of India, while David Willetts, the Universities and Science Minister, will travel to Chennai to promote university tie-ups.

Meanwhile, Jeremy Hunt, the culture and sport secretary, will go to Delhi, which is hosting the Commonwealth Games in October.

In Mumbai, Osborne will ring the bell to open the day's trading to the headquarters of top computer software companies.

On Thursday, Cameron will be accorded a ceremonial reception in the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi. Besides holding talks with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh, Cameron is scheduled to meet Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Discussions about the growing threat of LeT, the Pakistan-based terrorist group behind the Mumbai attacks in 2008, will be on the agenda of meetings between British foreign secretary William Hague and India's security chiefs.