The U.S. sanctions being imposed on India as punishment for its nuclear testing could very well benefit U.S. taxpayers -- by halting the flow of government aid and corporate welfare.

• Nearly $20 billion in aid had been planned for India -- with tax money being used to pay for agricultural exports, the Agency for International Development, the Trade and Development Agency, the World Bank, the Export-Import Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corp.

• The Ex-Im Bank and OPIC money would have gone to subsidize corporate welfare for such companies as Boeing, Coca-Cola, General Electric and Westinghouse, according to the Cato Institute.

• Prior to the May 13 sanctions, OPIC had approved more than $1 billion for U.S. firms doing business in India, with another $10.2 billion in the pipeline

• Meanwhile, the Ex-Im Bank was forced to halt $500 million in payments, with another $3.5 billion pending approval.

Specialists say that Ex-Im financing last year for a $500 million Boeing deal is assured -- but another deal worth $2 billion to Boeing is on hold. A $500 million deal for Hughes Electronics is assured, along with $600 million Lockheed Martin contract and a $2.5 billion Enron Corp. project.