Hi Padma & Vidya,
To me both are two different poles. If one is a super power in soft ware & another one in hard ware. Living in Singapore, I do mingle with both the communities. I see both the country shining in two different aspects. My husband travels a lot & he too says infrastructure in china is quite good & impressive! These developments are shown through high raised buildings, flyovers & other basic amenities such as public toilets whereas in India we need to focus a bit more on these aspects. But yes, one should remember china is communist country, freedom of speech & expression is less & India is democratic Country- Biggest flaw in a developing democratic country is ' Red tape'(ism), It's difficult to process a file or implement a law Be’cos of too many people involved with too many ideas! Satisfying every one in all manners is a Hercules task. And irrespective of too many views, policies, languages, people, culture, conflicts, and internal politics etc. our country remains (at least tries) to be united. On the other hand, the fellow citizens in china are working hard & they are forced to remain united! Therefore, again they are to different poles.
In Singapore, everyday immigrants are pouring in from these two countries. One common feature I notice in them is both are having the in-built fire to shine in life.
As a teacher, I notice students from main land China are good at Maths & Indians from India are good at languages & has good communicating skill. I acknowledge & appreciate both. Hence comparing two different countries is like comparing Mother and Mother-in-law, which a daughter or a daughter-in-law should refrain.