Narayana Murthy: Since Emergency, Indians have not paid enough attention to population control

Last October, Infosys founder Narayana Murthy had caused a stir in the country after he advised youngsters in the country to work for 70 hours a week if India wanted to compete with economies that have made tremendous progress in the last two to three decades.

NR Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys, expressed concerns over India's population growth and its potential impact on the nation's sustainability, during his address at the convocation ceremony of the Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT) in Prayagraj.

Murthy pointed out that since the Emergency period, India has not paid sufficient attention to population control, which he believes poses a significant risk to the country's sustainability. He also emphasised the critical challenges related to land availability and healthcare this poses.

"India faces significant challenges related to population, per capita land availability, and healthcare facilities. Since the Emergency period, we Indians have not paid enough attention to population control. This poses a risk of making our country unsustainable," Murthy said. "In comparison, countries such as the US, Brazil, and China have far higher per capita land availability," he added.

During his address, Narayana Murthy also underscored the importance of a professional’s duty towards national progress. He urged graduates to have high aspirations, dream big, and work diligently to transform those dreams into reality. "A true professional's responsibility is to contribute to the nation's progress," he said, adding that this contribution relies heavily on hard work and dedication. "This contribution depends on having high aspirations, dreaming big and working hard to turn those dreams into reality," the Infosys co-founder said.

Reflecting on his personal journey, Murthy acknowledged the sacrifices made by his family and teachers for his success. "One generation must make many sacrifices to improve the lives of the next. My parents, siblings and teachers made significant sacrifices for my progress and my presence here as the chief guest is proof that their sacrifices were not in vain," he said.

Last October, the Infosys founder had caused a stir in the country after he advised youngsters in the country to work for 70 hours a week if India wanted to compete with economies that have made tremendous progress in the last two to three decades.

He also blamed other issues like corruption in the government and bureaucratic delays, saying: “India's work productivity is one of the lowest in the world. Unless we improve our work productivity, unless we reduce corruption in the government at some level, because we have been reading I don't know the truth of it, unless we reduce the delays in our bureaucracy in taking this decision, we will not be able to compete with those countries that have made tremendous progress.”