The Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think-tank, has warned India and Pakistan that their military spending, fuelled by regional rivalries, is impeding economic development in both countries.
The report said that 21% of Pakistan’s 200 million people live on under $1.25 a day. In India absolute poverty has decreased from 41% of the country’s 1.2 billion people in 2005 to 22.6% now.
Meanwhile, India’s military spending more than doubled to $45 billion between 1998 and 2010. Pakistan’s military spending has remained relatively constant at around $5 billion a year.
