First Impressions: China vs. India — India Must Catch Up!

I know comparisons are odious but I’m making them anyway! My visit to China (May 11-June 5, 2024 — only the second in two decades — brought up a lot of latent issues. China’s progress is extraordinary; it has surpassed all the usual growth indices, crushed IMF forecasts, and hugely raised living standards. There really is no comparison to any other country. 

Going back to the late 90s, the Indian economy was just opening up after 50 years of stagnation and several international economists were saying that India had the edge over China. Both were at the same level but experts were more gung-ho about India for various reasons, chiefly, the rules of law and governance, democracy, and familiarity with the English language. The one economist who didn’t agree was Nobel Laureate, Amartya Sen. 

I heard Sen give a talk at SAIS, the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C. He cautioned against the hype. The lack of literacy would pull India down, he warned: in China, factory workers could read simple diagrams and numbers and put machinery parts together; in India, the level of illiteracy prevented even those basic tasks. Sen was prescient. China has far outrun not just India but many western countries to become the manufacturing giant and economic powerhouse it is today. Its literacy rate has increased from 66 percent in 1982 to 97.2 percent in 2020 (globaldata.com). India is 77.7 percent.

Infrastructure

Nobody builds infrastructure as rapidly as China or has the money to fund it, both domestically and overseas (witness the Belt and Road Initiative). Having visited India several times over the past decade, I have seen swanky airports and new roads (I hear there’s also a bullet train) but nowhere near enough and not a patch on China’s advanced infrastructure, which surpasses much in the West. China’s trains (I travelled thrice by bullet train and domestic airlines), are a far cry from anything I’ve seen in the U.S. (I’m a veteran of Amtrak travel) and certainly far superior to the more than two day Delhi to Trivandrum train journey I did a few years ago. 

Ever since the 1909 opening of the Zhongshan Bridge (see pic), the first permanent bridge over the Yellow River in Lanzhou — which cost an exorbitant 165,000 silver coins paid to a German construction firm — Chinese engineers and construction companies have themselves designed and built more than a million bridges and laid many more miles of roads and highways, another quite remarkable feat.  

China’s average infrastructure spending was nearly 10 times higher than that of the U.S. and is 4.8 percent of its GDP (Statista.com). India continues to lag behind China in infrastructure investment. 

Air Pollution

In my view, perhaps China’s biggest plus is getting a handle on air pollution. One can actually breathe without coughing and gagging. Whenever I return from India, it is with a hacking cough. Many Delhi friends are suffering from lung problems relating to pollution. One of them used an oxygen machine for five years before he died. Very young children are getting serious bronchial issues. 

Fifteen  years ago, Beijing’s air pollution was far more severe than Delhi. Now the country with the top ten worst polluted cities in the world is India. The failure of Indian authorities to take concrete steps to improve air quality is unforgivable in light of the disastrous consequences to its citizens’ health, wellbeing, and productivity. 

Security 

The lack of safety and security (especially for women) is one of India’s most intractable challenges. Rapes and assaults are an everyday occurrence. Not so in China. I did some travel by myself. I used public transport in Shanghai.  I felt safe.  In India, it is the opposite. 

I recall an incident when another woman and I were taking the night train to Hardwar-Rishikesh.  At Nizamuddin station, our first class carriage was surrounded by men trying to grab us. We were warned by the conductor to shut the windows and keep the carriage doors locked. It was scary. There were similar incidents over the years. In India, women need a sixth sense to survive. I’m not exaggerating. 

Monuments 

China must be commended for its upkeep of heritage monuments and museums. India can and must do a better job of promoting and preserving its ancient artifacts and buildings. I recall that historic temples in southern India under the control of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) were usually in great shape and properly sign posted. Not so the temples looked after by religious committees which were mainly interested in gouging money from visitors besides pouring milk and ghee over porous stone statues, thereby damaging them! I’ve heard that the ASI Museum in Delhi is dilapidated and hope that authorities will do a better job of maintenance. 

A few years ago, at a high school reunion, I remember being grossed out by the condition of the Kanya Kumari beaches (and the Vivekananda Rock Memorial) at the southern tip of India where the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea meet the Indian Ocean. It used to be a splendid place to visit; now it’s like a public latrine — again, not exaggerating — no point building more toilets if people won’t use them! 

I recall a late night bus journey from Khajuraho to Jhansi when the bus suddenly braked in the middle of the road. The driver nearly ran over a group of women, their faces covered, using the highway as a toilet because it was safer than going in the fields! Granted this took place over two decades ago, but it could happen today. 

I was struck that the Shanghai History Museum mentioned the Harappan Civilization (Indus Valley, Mohenjdaro and Harappa). It said that the Liangzhu Culture in China was “synchronous,” that is, around the same period as that of ancient Egypt, ancient Babylon, and the Harappan civilization in ancient India. (See pic). There is in fact evidence that the four traded with each other. 

Since both China and India have over 5,000 plus years of history and civilization, they may want to pool their knowledge, research, and resources to maintain and preserve their archaeological treasures. 

Doing Business

If there’s one thing that drives China it is commerce. You see it everywhere, not just in the small mom and pop stores but the existence of bustling shops of every size and variety as well as large department stores and those selling international brands. One of my guides in Shanghai told me how easy it is to open a business in China both for citizens and foreigners. 

This was confirmed by the World Bank's (sadly, now defunct) Doing Business Annual Report that measured how easy it was for companies to open businesses in WB member countries. Many years ago, China and India were lagging behind other nations but China made huge strides to ease regulations regarding labor and land acquisition, tariffs, and other metrics; as a result, it’s standing shot upwards. India did not quite catch up. According to a recent Reuters story, there may be hope. India’s ruling party is planning  “a raft of business-friendly measures” to rival China and transform India into a global manufacturing hub. 

Speaking English

One area where India still has a definite edge is English. I was surprised that few people — even in China’s five star international hotels — actually speak English. In Xi’an and Lanzhou, it was impossible to communicate by phone. You had to go to the hotel lobby armed with the translation app on the iPhone to make yourself understood. This led to a couple of hilarious incidents. 

At the hotel spa in Xi’an, I had to first get the front desk to intervene. Later, I kept waiting for the treatment to begin — the tea ceremony and foot soaking took forever. I asked on the app if I should shower first and the attendant responded, “wash it and he will come!”  She meant the female masseuse, not some strange man!  

At a restaurant in Turpan, Xinjiang (where we’d eaten the previous night), we ordered beer and the waiter kept nodding as if he understood. We reminded him a couple more times but still no beer — we had to resort to the translation app for the beer to finally arrive! 

Vegetarian and Gluten Free

In my (rather narrow) view, another area where China is behind is in the availability of vegetarian and gluten free cuisine. It was tough for me to get anything beyond vegetable fried rice, bok choy, and eggplant whereas India has such an endless variety of vegetarian and gluten-free food made from basin (chickpea flour). Sadly, my skin sensitivity prevents me from eating more exotic fare (lotus root, wood ear mushroom, bamboo shoots, even tofu).  I was told that in China meat is often added as flavoring. Some fellow travelers suggested I push aside the meat and just eat the veg: not an option for me! 

End of Poverty?

Two years ago, the World Bank touted China’s accomplishment of lifting 800 million people out of poverty. By any standard this is an amazing achievement that India has yet to wrap its arms around. We travelled two weeks in Western China. There were no beggars or homeless people, except for one person outside the mosque in Xi’an. There was no poop on the streets, or paan (betel leaf) spit up, and roads often looked freshly washed and cleaned! (There’s actually more spitting by the — mostly Taiwanese — Chinese population in Flushing, Queens, NY, but that’s an anecdote for another day)! 

The less said about evident poverty in India the better. It is heartrending to see women and kids still crowding around traffic lights or grabbing you as you walk. Poverty is ubiquitous; it’s in your face; you can’t ignore it or pretend it ain’t there!  

Democracy vs. Communism 

Democracy in India (as imperfect as it is) is another factor that has not quite worked in its favor. There is no doubt that China would not have made the progress it has if not for Communism and the ability to get things done without waiting for endless debates and parliamentary committees. 

We are witness to western liberal values being imperiled in America’s upcoming 2024 election with the possible advent of a new kind of authoritarianism that is increasing not just in the U.S. but elsewhere in the world. 

In my view, desis (my erstwhile, though no less beloved, fellow countrymen) are getting the short end of the stick — all the disadvantages and none of the advantages of a faux democracy. Freedom of expression is curtailed and minorities are persecuted but without the benefit of clean air, good jobs, decent health care, electricity without load shedding, reliable drinking water, safety for women, you name it! 

Ludi Joseph

Shanghai 

June 3, 2024

Historic Zhongshan Bridge, Lanzhou

Bridge outside Tianshui

Bullet Train, Turpan

Bullet Train, Lanzhou

Wind Turbines, Xinjiang

Shanghai Harbor

Shanghai History Museum, Mention of Harappa

Shanghai History Museum. Ancient Civilizations Map: China, Babylon, Egypt, India