On a muggy day in Delhi, an 70-year-old man stood in the midst of a whorl of cameras and reporters that scrummed around him. For 30 years, he served in the Indian Navy, retiring as commander. The nation has a strange way of acknowledging his contribution, he said. "These politicians take 3 days to increase their salaries. But they can't increase our pension by 80 rupees a day? We can't understand this," said Commander (Retd) RN Anand.