Narayana Murthy Suggests 3-Shift Work For Infrastructure Sector Employees, Sparks Debate

Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy has said that the government needs to complete infrastructure projects on priority and emphasised the need for three working shifts instead of one. Mr Murthy's comment came while discussing the requirement for Bengaluru's development in the next 5-10 years. 

"Completing the Electronics City Metro and expanding to other areas, where there are a lot of companies located, must be prioritised," Mr Murthy said during a fireside chat with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath at the Bengaluru Tech Summit held on November 29. 

He urged the infrastructure industry to move beyond the traditional one-shift, "They should not work just one shift, come 11 am and go at 5 pm."

He said that people in nations with ambitious aspirations often operate on two work shifts. He said if India embraced a similar approach, it could surpass China's growth. "Elsewhere in the nation with high aspirations, people work - I have seen two shifts because I would return around midnight. And I've seen people working as if they're going to disappear tomorrow morning. So, while I cannot vouch for three shifts there, I can vouch for two shifts," he said.

Murthy said, "Now if we want to be better than all those countries, why don't we say our people will work three shifts? Ask them what the requirements are for them to complete their work by working three shifts, and provide them with that. I think there is a little bit of these things that can be done by our leaders. And if we did that, then I have no doubt why India cannot grow even faster than China, not just in growth alone. Our base is only 3.5 trillion, whereas China's is 19 trillion. But we will catch up with China, and hopefully, one day we can overtake China. But that requires making quick decisions, ensuring that all hurdles for entrepreneurs like you and others today, I'm not an entrepreneur, are removed as if there is no tomorrow," he said.

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Mr Murthy listed three things during the fireside chat including English medium schools for talented resources for the city's software industry, focus on infrastructure, and quick decision-making by the government. 

He also said that Bengaluru contributes about 35-37 % of the total software exports from India. "So what it means is that you are looking at about 75 billion dollars from just Bengaluru if you look at 200 billion dollar total exports from India."

His comments sparked a debate among users on social media.

"Give triple the salary other nations are giving triple the salaries," a user wrote. 

"Follow salary structure wise talking doesn't make any sense," another user wrote. 

"With all due respect. Please stop making such irrelevant statements," the third user wrote. 

Earlier, Mr Murthy sparked a debate online after making a remark that "youngsters should work 70 hours a week if India wants to compete with economies that have made tremendous progress in the last two to three decades."