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India world's No. 1 arms importer
NEW DELHI: India has emerged as the largest arms importer in the world, overtaking even China, claims a report by a Swedish think-tank.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri), in its report to be released on Monday, said India accounted for 9% of all international arms imports between 2006-2010, making it the world`s largest weapons importer.
China was relegated to second place, notching 6% of global arms imports, Siemon Wezeman of Sipri told international news agencies. The US remains the largest arms exporter, followed by Russia and Germany, as per the report.
Poverty is widespread in India, with the nation estimated to have a third of the world's poor. According to a 2005 World Bank estimate, 41.6% of the total Indian population falls below the international poverty line of US$ 1.25 a day (PPP, in nominal terms 21.6 a day in urban areas and 14.3 in rural areas). more..