T.V. Mohandas Pai silences critics of Infosys over Narayana Murthy's "70-hour workweek" statement

 T.V. Mohandas Pai silences critics of Infosys over Narayana Murthy's "70-hour workweek" statement

After Abhijit Iyer-Mitra tweeted about NR Narayana Murthy's suggestion for a 70-hour workday for young people, TV Mohandas Pai advised him to "shut up."

A verbal spat broke out between Abhijit Iyer-Mitra and TV Mohandas Pai in response to Narayana Murthy's remarks on 70-hour workweeks.

previous Infosys CFO TV Mohandas Pai responded angrily to a criticism of his previous business on Twitter, which came from defense analyst Abhijit Iyer-Mitra. The discussion began when Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy said in a recent interview with Pai that if India wants to compete with nations that are developing quickly, young people in India need to be ready to work 70 hours a week.

In response to Murthy's claim, Iyer-Mitra said on X, "Typical Indian sweatshop attitude." Because of this, Infosys is just a glorified supplier of low-value add IT coolies."

Pai swiftly retweeted, saying, "Abhijit, please stop passing judgment on values. You are ignorant about Infosys and its operations. India completes the most complicated job for some of the largest and most advanced multinational corporations. Open your mouth when you create a $20 billion revenue corporation or anything like. Till then, just keep quiet."

Commenters took sides in the conflict on social media.

According to such reasoning, Abhijit shouldn't talk about defense issues since someone would always remark, "Pai Saab, pick up a weapon and fight first." said one user.

Leaders or laggards, nobody is making you put in seventy hours of effort just to respond. Those who choose to put in more hours might take advantage of additional development possibilities. Choice is personal," said a different author.

A other user offered a thoughtful viewpoint. "Abhijit is incorrect to disparage Infosys. I'm quite proud of what Infy accomplished (in spite of many Indian governments). However, I must draw attention to the common Indian Lala assumptions about managing a factory. Although this may be a general Asian phenomenon, a nation's capacity to compete with the west is not determined by the amount of hours worked under difficult conditions. The remark said, "Skill development, high-quality education, and intelligent work are what decide it.

The billionaire Murthy made the divisive remarks while speaking on 3one4 Capital's podcast, "The Record," which Pai hosts. He covered a wide range of subjects, including as nation-building, technology, and the work culture in India.

The 77-year-old brought up the fact that India has among of the lowest rates of labor production in the world during the discussion. Murthy drew a comparison between the post-World War II efforts of Germany and Japan and stressed the necessity for India's young to work more hours in order to compete with economic giants like China.

Murthy didn't stop with the suggestion of a workweek. He identified bureaucratic hold-ups and government corruption as the main roadblocks to development, saying that "India's work productivity is among the lowest in the world." We won't be able to compete with those nations that have made enormous strides unless we increase work productivity, decrease government corruption to some extent—we've been reading about it, but I don't know the reality—and shorten the time it takes for our bureaucracy to make decisions."

Murthy said the youngsters make up a major section of India's population and emphasized that it is their duty to lead the country's development. He urged discipline, diligence, and resolve as the engines of development and advocated for a cultural revolution in India.

"We need to be disciplined and improve our work productivity," said Narayana Murthy. I wonder what the government can do if we don't do that? Every government is only as good as the people that inhabit it. And we need to shift to a culture that values individuals who are extraordinarily disciplined, extremely driven, and extremely hardworking. Since young people now make up a significant portion of our population and have the capacity to construct our nation, they must spearhead this transition."

Murthy is hardly the first to advocate for a strict work ethic. To boost the post-pandemic economy, he pushed Indian professionals to put in 60 hours a week for the next two to three years starting in 2020.

Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal has backed Murthy's remarks, while former MD of BharatPe Ashneer Grover has offered commentary on the response, suggesting that people may not have taken the remarks well since, in his opinion, "work is still being measured in 'hours' rather than 'outcome'." "People think that the only thing preventing India from developing is the laziness of its youth," he said.