NEW DELHI: Indian and French negotiators were haggling on Friday over the price of 36 combat planes for the ageing Indian air force, officials of the two nations said, just days before President Francois Hollande visits New Delhi to cement commercial ties.

The fighter jet deal is part of a $150-billion military modernization drive India has launched, drawing global arms makers into one of the world’s biggest markets.

Hollande and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped into the estimated $9-billion deal last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with the plane maker, Dassault Aviation, collapsed.

The leaders agreed to scale back the original plan for 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in flyaway condition, to meet the Indian Air Force’s urgent needs, as it faces China and Pakistan.

But even the smaller deal ran into problems over the unit price of the planes and other contract terms.

France’s envoy to India, Francois Richier, said the two sides were holding talks in New Delhi but he could not say for sure if they would strike a deal ahead of, or during, Hollande’s visit, which begins on Sunday.