Hungry Families, Costly Submarines: Pakistan Sinks National Interest | India News

At a time when ordinary Pakistani families face difficulties in terms of food inflation, high electricity bills and financial ancestor squeezing measures imposed by the IMF, the Pakistani government and the Army continue to invest billions of dollars in new submarines. This shows the wrong placed priorities of the country with a prestige -oriented defense policy.

Since 1958, Pakistan has greatly rely on IMF loans that have entered the 25th rescue program. The latest package of $ 7 billion contains solid conditions. These vary between parliamentary approval of a financially restricted budget, reforms in the energy sector and low subsidies.

In spite of these restrictions, the Pakistan government approved a 20% march in the defense budget in June this year, after conflicts with India, now at 2.5 trillion PKR or 1.97% of GDP, referring to regional threats and military modernization.

This comes at a time when households encounter struggles, including high food inflation and power tariffs.

According to the Pakistan Statistical Office: “Food costs in Pakistan increased by 0.89 percent in July 2025 in the same month of the previous year. Food inflation in Pakistan reached 10.09 percent from 2011 to 2025, 48.65 percent in 2023, 48.65 percent and reached 48.65 percent on March 2023.

Therefore, even families have difficulty in covering daily expenses that earn more than minimum wage.

Instead of increasing the military budget, it can be used for the targeted subsidies programs to prevent the same amount of food inflation, to improve agriculture or to directly support households that encounter increased grocery and electricity bills. The economists waited for social development cuts to finance the increase in defense expenditures. They argued that these funds can support health services or food safety when the priorities were set.

Pakistani Navy’s submarine purchase

Nevertheless, in the middle of financial stress, Pakistan is making an agreement with China to buy a submarine for eight types of 039A (Hangor class). The third ship was released on August 15, 2025 with a ceremony held at a shipyard in Wuhan. Hangors, developed sensors designed to resist regional competitors and increase maritime deterrence were launched with hidden and weapons systems.

In 2015, Pakistan signed a $ 4-5 billion agreement with the China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Company (CSOC) to buy eight Hangor-class submarines. As part of the agreement, four submarines are being built in China, and the other is gathering in Pakistan in Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Affairs under a technology transfer program with the planned deliveries between 2022 and 2028.

Hangor class submarines can increase Pakistan’s maritime stance a little, but are undoubtedly markers of a state that gives priority to military optics over their citizens’ urgent survival needs. Food safety does not have the same optics as it has done for submarine national security.

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