Infosys founder NRN wants govt to encourage entrepreneurs with incentives

NT Correspondent

Mysuru: Infosys founder and mentor NR Narayanamurthy wants the government to promote industries and provide entrepreneurs with incentives for job creation and elimination of poverty in the nation. He was speaking after launching the Mysuru Entrepreneurship Forum to boost innovation and entrepreneurship in the region at a function organized by Bherunda Foundation at a private hotel in the city.

He also wanted the government to stop encouraging freebies for people and instead focus on ensuring quality education to all irrespective of gender and region besides focusing on improvement of skills of students as these will help students come up with innovative solutions to build a robust, progressive nation. He regretted that the current Indian education system is restricted to improving the pass percentage of students. As every citizen is gifted with talent and ideas, there is a need for promotion of their activities, he said. He also advised entrepreneurs to focus on international market by producing qualitative, healthy products which can be sold at affordable prices apart from concentrating on domestic markets for successful business entrepreneurship. Advanced countries like the US, Japan, Germany, China have focused on international marketing and are thriving in the market, he said.

Though agriculture is the mainstay of the nation, its output is very less. The productivity of advanced countries like the US, China, and Japan is six times that of India because of its technological success, said the Infosys founder. He wanted policy makers of the nation to introduce climate resistance crops, grow crops in flood affected areas and drought hit areas by having an understanding with the International Council of Agriculture Research at Manila. Her reminded those present that Israel had developed technology to grow crops with less water. Speaking on the occasion, Rajya Sabha member and Infosys Foundation chairperson Sudha Murty said she and her husband who came from middle class teachers' families, became successful entrepreneurs because of their ethics and thier ability to ensure customer satisfaction, quality products and services rather than chasing money.

They did not follow money but money followed them, she remarked. She recalled that her husband Narayanmurthy had started his company with an investment of just Rs 10,000. Sudha Murty also recalled the contributions of the Wadiyars of Mysuru and Sir M Visvesvaraya to the modern development of Mysuru state and the sacrifices of the queens of Mysore royal family to the development of Karnataka. She described her husband Narayanamurthy who is a Mysurean as a 'corporate Gandhi' who always advocated development.