Narayana Murthy Says Overpopulation May Render India, "Unsustainable"

During a convocation ceremony at the Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology in Prayagraj, Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy expressed concern about India's rapidly rising population. 

He said this neglect in population control since the Emergency period is endangering the nation's future.

"India faces population, land availability, and healthcare challenges, " Murthy noted. 

He spoke of the contrast between countries like the US, Brazil, and China, pointing out the lack of attention paid to population control in India since the emergency period. This poses a risk of unsustainability, unlike countries with higher per capita land availability like the US, Brazil, and China.

Murthy said, "Since the Emergency period, we Indians have not paid enough attention to population control. This poses a risk of making our country unsustainable. In comparison, countries such as the US, Brazil and China have far higher per capita land availability,"

Narayana Murthy had doubted India's aspiration to compete with China as a global manufacturing hub in the past. 

At the ‘ELCIA Tech Summit 2024,’ he cautioned against prematurely using terms like "hub" and "global leader," noting that "China has already become the factory of the world." 

Murthy explained the need for improvements in public governance to foster growth in manufacturing.

He also highlighted the sacrifices made by the previous generation, including his parents, siblings, and teachers, which paved the way for current opportunities.

"This contribution depends on having high aspirations, dreaming big and working hard to turn those dreams into reality. One generation must make many sacrifices to improve the lives of the next. My parents, siblings and teachers made significant sacrifices for my progress and my presence here as the chief guest is proof that their sacrifices were not in vain," the Infosys co-founder said.

Social Media Reaction:

Online users resonated with Murthy's comments on India's lack of focus on overpopulation.

One user wrote, "If you have to select one common factor for all the problems like inflation, unemployment, starvation in India, it will be population. None of the party is concerned about population control. India will collapse one day if population can't be controlled. Learn from china."

Another wrote, "He is correct. Population in India is a bane. We don't have the resources to manage 1.5 billion."