Sep 12, 2024 03:50 PM IST
Narayana Murthy ignited debate on parenting, asserting parents must create a disciplined home for children.
Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy triggered a massive debate after he shared his thoughts on parenting. The tech boss had earlier sparked a row when he advocated for a 70-hour work week for the youth. At an event in Bengaluru earlier this week, Narayana Murthy said that parents are responsible for creating a disciplined environment at home for children to study. He said that parents cannot be watching movies while expecting children to focus on their studies.
He said, “If the parents are going and seeing movies and then telling ‘children, no, no, you study,’ (that won’t work).”
Narayana Murthy also shared how he and his wife dedicated over three and a half hours each day to reading with their children, Akshata and Rohan Murty, during their school years.
Social media users reacted to his remarks with one commenting, “But if parents work for 72 hours as you recommend, then when will they devote time to kids?”
Another said, “Yeah right! Parents should also work on improving their calculas and organic chemistry knowledge in their late 30s and early 40s. Narayana Murthy should also walk the talk and learn Go Lang at this age and code for 70 hours every week.”
A third sarcastically wrote, “Parents and kids should stop watching movies and resolve support tickets for 70 hours per week on the night shift at a low salary.”
A user also wrote, “It’s unrealistic to expect every parent to dedicate hours to reading or studying with their kids, especially in today’s world where many parents are juggling jobs, household responsibilities, and more. Not all families have the same resources or time. Imposing this ideal on everyone is out of touch with the reality most parents face.”
Earlier, Narayana Murthy controversially suggested that young people should be prepared to work 70 hours a week to improve India’s work culture. He had then said, “I used to be in the office at 6:20 am and leave office at 8:30 pm and worked six days a week. During my entire 40-plus years of professional life, I worked 70 hours a week. When we had a six-day week – till 1994 – I used to work at least 85 to 90 hours a week. That has not been a waste.”