NEW DELHI: Congress MP Karti P Chidambaram has hit out at Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy for expressing disappointment over India’s shift to a five-day workweek in 1986.
Murthy, a vocal advocate for a 70-hour workweek, believes India’s growth hinges on hard work, not leisure.
Refusing to budge from his stance, Murthy recently told CNBC-TV18 at the Global Leadership Summit, “I am sorry, I have not changed my view.” The tech veteran doubled down, adding, “I don’t believe in work-life balance… I will take this with me to my grave.”
Citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 100-hour workweeks, Murthy suggested that citizens should emulate such dedication.
Responding to Murthy’s remarks, Chidambaram took to ‘X,’ saying, “Working longer is meaningless, focus should be on efficiency. Daily life is as it is a struggle, battling inefficient & substandard infrastructure & amenities.”
“Work life balance is most important for good social order & harmony. We should infact move to a 4 day working week. 12 noon on Monday to 2 pm on Friday,” he added further.
’70 hour workweek’
Murthy’s comments originally came during a chat with former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai on 3one4 Capital’s podcast ‘The Record.’ “India’s work productivity is one of the lowest in the world. Unless we improve our work productivity…we will not be able to compete with those countries that have made tremendous progress,” Murthy said, citing China, Japan, and Germany.
“My request is that our youngsters must say, ‘This is my country. I’d like to work 70 hours a week,” he added.
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