How they reacted - to our budget
The BBC quizzed, "Whatever happened to the poverty and unemployment associated with India?" and answered, "Well, these problems haven't exactly disappeared. The country's social and physical infrastructure facilities are inadequate and creaking." The BBC which is not exactly famous for highlighting India's achievements observed,
One out of four Indians, or around 250 million people, lives below the officially defined poverty line and half the population earns an income worth $2 a day or less.
One out of three Indians cannot read and write their own names and close to half of the children who join primary school drop out.
Much of the money spent by the government on development schemes gets diverted by corrupt officials and subsidies meant for the poor do not reach those who need these the most.
At the same time, affluent Indians living in urban areas cities flaunt lifestyles that are comparable to those of the rich in developed countries.
However, even in cities of concrete and steel that glitter on the surface, a third of the residents live in abject poverty, denied secure jobs, social security and access to basic sanitation facilities and clean drinking water.
In Pakistan what interests most is our defence budget and Online International News Network reported,
India Tuesday announced an increase of 7.2 percent in its defence budget, allocating a whopping Rs.89,000 crore (Rs.890 billion, $20 billion) for the fiscal year 2006-07.
Of this, Rs.37,458 crore (Rs.374.6 billion) - or 42 percent of the total outlay - has been earmarked for new arms purchases.
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram told parliament he was increasing the allocation for defence from Rs.83,000 crore (Rs.830 billion) in the current fiscal in view of the enhanced expenditure on the modernisation of the armed forces.
India is in the market for a wide array of sophisticated hardware, including 126 combat jets and 80 helicopters, to modernise the ageing military arsenal, and some deals are expected to be finalised in the next fiscal.