- India’s defence forces assert that they need more resources to upgrade their equipment and arms.
- India is already the world’s fourth-largest military spender.
- Many claim that India’s military spending is at its lowest since the 1962 war against China, however, India’s reduction of its military spending has been relatively flat with only marginal decreases.
Here's how the budget allocation for Armed Forces in India stacks up on the global scale
Last year, the government set aside 2.04% of the GDP for the Ministry of Defence. However, more than 70% of it was $4.
Although India’s military spending is a mere fraction of how much China and the US are ready to splurge — it still ranks among the top five military spenders in the world. In 2018, India was the fourth-largest spender at $66.5 million. The country’s expenditure has increased by nearly 29% since 2009, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute ($4).
In comparison, other countries have been more stringent about tightening their purse strings — albeit they had a higher jumping-off point.
Among India’s neighbours, Pakistan is the only one with a lower GDP but higher military expenditure.
See also:
$4
$4