You cannot compare China and India's GDP in dollar terms. China's currency is pegged to the dollar while India's currency floats in a semi-market mechanism. Tomorrow if Indian rupee considerably appreciated against the dollar, the GDP in dollar terms will change. The same goes for China. The best way to compare the output of the two countries is to compare the installed power capacity, which is the real source for prosperity. India's installed capacity is about $160,000 MW while China's is about 750,000 MW. Given that the installed capacities are fully utilized, China's output is 5 times higher than India's. This is also natural because India is predominantly a service economy while china's is a manufacturing economy. There are further implications: $1 in India makes more money than $1 in China, because margins in the service business are much higher than margins in the manufacturing business. Infrastructure like roads and buildings are dicey indicators as well : More service business can be conducted with absolutely little physical infrastructure these days - think Internet - video conferencing etc. While in China, you need massive roads, ports etc to handle a manufacturing economy, which makes people work a lot but produces little in profits when compared to a service economy such as India or the US. Right now, I would say China's output is 5 times India's based on installed power capacity ( I dont use fudged GDP numbers). But, Bhutan says they are the #1 happiest country in the world and give a damn about the GDP. Take your pick. Not all of us want exploitation by capitalists and communists.