China was the most populous country on earth for a very long time, that is common knowledge among educated people. It makes a difference in the story if they're struggling in an economy five times wealthier than India's.

That's why I looked it up. That's why some other people will look it up.

This is the population difference we're talking about:

1. India, 1,463,865,525

2, China, 1,416,096,094