KOLKATA, India, July 1 (Reuters) - Former French Socialist Prime Minister Michel Rocard is stable and will soon move out of intensive care after emergency brain surgery in India, hospital authorities said on Sunday.

Rocard, 76, appeared "cheerful" throughout the day, hospital authorities said.

"He has responded to the treatment programme very well and will be moved out of intensive care shortly," Rupak Barua, the chief operating officer at the CMRI Hospital, told Reuters.

"He is still not out of danger and we are constantly monitoring his condition," Barua said in Kolkata.

Rocard, an elder statesmen of centre-left politics in France, arrived in India this week on the invitation of the Communist government of West Bengal but suddenly fell ill on Saturday and was rushed to the hospital.

A brain scan revealed a blood clot and he was whisked to the operation theatre after a hurriedly called conference with French doctors in Paris, Barua said.

Rocard sought the Socialist nomination for the 1981 presidential election, only to drop out when Francois Mitterrand ran and won. Rocard tried again in 1988 but had to back down. Mitterrand was re-elected.

He was subsequently appointed prime minister, gaining popularity with a low-key conciliatory style. Three years later, Mitterrand sacked him.

Rocard was elected to the Senate in 1995 and played a prominent role in Lionel Jospin's renovation of the party.

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