Infosys founder Narayana Murthy defends 70-hour work week comment again, says 800 mn Indians are in poverty – CNBC TV18

Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy has reiterated that youngsters in India must work 70 hours a week and set aspirations high to help reduce the gap between the rich and poor.

“Once we compare ourselves with the best global companies, I can tell you we Indians have a lot to do. We have to set our aspirations high because 800 million Indians get free ration. That means 800 million Indians are in poverty. If we are not in a position to work hard, then who will work hard?” Murthy said at the Indian Chamber of Commerce centenary launch. He was speaking to RPSG Group chairman Sanjiv Goenka.

Murthy recalled how his father would talk about the extraordinary progress taking place in the country at the time when Jawaharlal Nehru was the Prime Minister and the Indian Institutes of Technology were made into a reality.

His conversations with the people in the West made him realise that the only way a country can fight poverty is by creating jobs that lead to disposable incomes.

“The government has absolutely no role in entrepreneurship. I also realised entrepreneurs build a nation as they create jobs, they create wealth for their investors and they pay taxes.”

Hence, Murthy urged the entrepreneurs of today to embrace compassionate capitalism while integrating the best aspects of socialism. He explained that if a country embraces capitalism, it will create good roads, good trains and good infrastructure.

Also Read: When Narayana Murthy said we have to work hard, we owe it to the less fortunate

This is the latest among the many instances since November 2023 that the Infosys co-founder has defended his 70-hour workweek comment.

Last month, Murthy also told CNBC-TV18, “I don’t believe in work-life balance… I have not changed my view; I will take this to my grave.” He said he was a bit disappointed when, back in 1986, companies moved from a six-day work week to a five-day work week.

“I was not very happy with that. I think in this country, we have to work very hard because there is no substitute for hard work even if you’re the most intelligent guy,” he said.

Infosys founder revealed that he used to go to the office at 6:20 am every day and return at 8:30 pm, which was over 14 hours of work a day. He added that he worked for 6.5 days a week till he retired and that he is very proud of it. And therefore, he is not going back on his statement that the ‘youngsters must work 70 hours a week.’