An Indian billionaire has advice for young people. They should work 70 hours a week

One of India’s top business leaders has said that young Indians must achieve a 70-hour work week if they want their country to realize its economic potential. “My request is for our youth to say: ‘This is my country. I want to work 70 hours a week,’” said Narayana Murthy, the 77-year-old founder of IT giant Infosys.

Founder of Infosys

Murthy co-founded Infosys in 1981 and whose net worth is around $4.3 billion, said India has one of the lowest levels of productivity in the world and that it is the responsibility of the country’s young people to make changes in their work culture.

According to data from the International Labor Organization (ILO), approximately 66 percent India’s population is under the age of 35. “Our culture must change to one of highly determined, extremely disciplined and extremely hard-working people,” Murthy said.

He added that it is an opportune time to “consolidate and accelerate” the country’s economic progress as India begins to gain global recognition for its rapidly growing economy, which is poised to become the world’s second-largest economy by 2075.

Burnout

However, according to the ILO, Indians already work the longest hours of any nationality, averaging around 47.7 hours per week per person employed. This puts India seventh in the world ranking, with only Qatar, Congo, Lesotho, Bhutan, Gambia and the United Arab Emirates achieving higher averages according to the ILO.

Murthy’s comments have therefore sparked debate on social media, with some arguing that taking his advice could backfire and lead to burnout.