https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-03-29/india-isn-t-spending-enough-on-its-military-to-take-on-china?cmpId=yhoo.headline&yptr=yahoo

That concern is now part of the official record: India’s vice-chief of army staff warned a parliamentary committee that over two-thirds of the army’s equipment was “vintage.” According to him, the military doesn’t have enough money to pay for committed purchases, let alone replacing older arms. It can’t afford the 10 fighting days’ worth of ammunition it considers a basic necessity. The air force, meanwhile, is missing one of the four squadrons it needs to be at full strength, while the navy is so short of submarines -- it has 15 to China’s 70, and many of those 15 are superannuated -- that it sent its two newest subs out to sea without torpedoes.

Instead, India has made it clear that it intends to challenge China in its neighborhood, its seas and on the world stage. The politicians’ egos are writing checks the military can’t cash. Metaphorically, that is: In actual fact, the politicians aren’t writing many checks for the military at all.