India, Feb. 12 -- India has approved a proposal worth Rs 3.25 lakh crore to procure 114 Rafale fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF), marking the country's largest defence acquisition, media reports said.

The clearance was granted by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, which accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) to the programme ahead of French President Emmanuel Macron's forthcoming visit to New Delhi.

According to NDTV's sources, 18 of the 114 aircraft will be procured off-the-shelf from French defence manufacturer Dassault Aviation, while the remaining 96 jets will be manufactured in India under a strategic partnership model.

The proposal will now move to the Cabinet Committee on ...