Narayana Murthy talks democracy, pluralism, population growth: 'Most urgent need is...'

He said that in a democracy, one has the freedom to express opinions responsibly, courteously and fearlessly, and where one also has the freedom to seek a better quality of life.

"This translates to the responsibility to create a just society, which embraces the fundamental principle to provide the strongest set of civil liberties and personal rights to everyone, and to tolerate new economic inequalities only if such inequalities ameliorate the conditions of the poor citizens," he said.

Murthy said that India, despite the laudable economic progress made in the last three decades, has unresolved problems in poverty, population, potable water and clean air.

"India has not put population control on the front burner. The most urgent need at the moment is to reduce our population growth rate. While certain parts of India have made decent progress in reducing it, certain other parts have not paid sufficient attention to this important issue," he said.

Exhorting the graduating students, Murthy, now chairman emeritus of Infosys, said a professional is one who lives by the rules of the profession and its ethics.

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"A professional strives hard to be open-minded since he knows that the most dangerous thing in the world is a closed mind," he said.

The university also conferred the Doctor of Letters degree on eminent industrialist Ratan Tata in absentia.