Comparative Development Experiences of India and its Neighbours

Development Path of India, Pakistan and China

  • India, Pakistan and China have many similarities in their developmental strategies.
  • All three nations started their developmental path at the same time.
  • India and Pakistan got independence in 1947 and the People's Republic of China were established in 1949.
  • All the-three countries had started planning their development strategies in similar ways. India announced its first Five Year Plan in 1951, Pakistan announced in 1956 and China in 1253.
  • Since 2013, Pakistan is working on the basis of 11th Five Year Development Plan (2013-18), while China is working on 13th Five Year Plan (2016-20). Until March 2017, India has been following Five Year Plan-based development model.
  • India and Pakistan adopted similar strategies, such as creating a large public sector and raising public expenditure on social development.
  • Till 1980s, all the three countries had similar growth rates and per capita incomes. All the three countries have performed differently. India and Pakistan have made slow and irregular progress as compared to China, which has made miraculous progress.