For over a decade, from 1994-95 to 2005-06, the state received 10-12% of all grants disbursed by the central government to the states. In 2009-10, this proportion had dipped slightly to about 8%. This is way above J&K's share of India's population, which is a mere 1%.
The astonishing fact is that, despite all the wailing and the beating of breasts, J&K is the least poor state in the country, with a rate of poverty of about 3.4 per cent, compared to 26 per cent for the country as a whole! And no prizes for guessing how it got that way: a hint, it is not because they earn lots of foreign exchange from tourism, dried fruits and nuts, and pashmina shawls.
In effect, Kashmir is extracting royal tribute from the rest of India. Strangely reminiscent of what the British did during colonial times. That is, there is massive funds flow from the Centre to J&K. Look at the magnitude of that largesse:
| Fiscal Year | Amount (Rs, in Crores) |
| 1991 | 1,244 |
| 1992 | 1,393 |
| 1993 | 1,569 |
| 1994 | 1,820 |
| 1995 | 2,635 |
| 1996 | 2,627 |
| 1997 | 3,208 |
| 1998 | 3,624 |
| 1999 | 3,833 |
| 2000 | 4,604 |
| 2001 | 4,437 |
| 2002 | 4,578 |
| CAGR 1991-2002 | 14% |
Source: India Today, October 14, 2002. 'Great Sop Story,' V Shankar Aiyar. For further information, see www.cifjkindia.com, www.kashmir-information.com, www.kashmiri-pandit.org
The Union government's aid to J&K has therefore far outstripped the growth in the GDP, which has averaged roughly 5% in this time frame. What does this mean? J&K gets a larger and larger share of central expenditure on states. In fact, it gets 10 percent of all central assistance and J&K has received more than any other state since 1995! Far out of proportion to its fair share, which by population should be about 1 percent: that is, J&K gets roughly ten times what it deserves.
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