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Can't say how the two technical careers paths compare in India, but in the USA, according to salary surveys, salaries are supposed to be roughly comparable.
You career (technically) might advance faster in programming as I believe it's easier for management to recognize positive and negative contributions. You can advance faster in networking if you acquire a coveted certification such as Cisco's CCIE. Much depends on supply vs. demand, locally.
Although most of us are interested in renumeration, don't ignore what you actually like to do. Liking what you do often makes it easier to do what you do, better. Also, you'll often fine doing something you dislike, for just a little more renumeration, often doesn't seem worth it after a while.
