In 1948, Costa Rica did something no country had done before: it abolished its military and redirected defence spending to schools and hospitals. Seventy-six years later, it ranks as the happiest nation in the Americas, with a life expectancy of 81, a literacy rate of 97%, and a $4-billion ecotourism economy. India spends 2.4% of GDP on defence and only 2.1% on health. The math – and the lesson – deserve a hard look.
