Note ban went down well with rural India, says N R Narayana Murthy

Kolkata: Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy asserted on Wednesday that the demonetisation by the Centre in 2016 augured well with the majority of rural Indians in sharp contrast to the urban intellectuals who however did not accept the Modi government’s move to ban Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes. He however claimed that he did not understand why the demonetisation took place.

He was speaking at a conference in the Presidency University with its students on the government’s demonetisation of high-value notes.

According to Mr Murthy, since he is neither an expert in economics nor on the demonetisation, he failed to understand the motive behind the demonetisation drive. 

He said, “However I found that the urban intellectuals did not accept the demonestisation although a vast majority of the rural Indians appeared to have welcomed it. As I am not an expert, still as a layman I noticed that when old notes of Rs 500 denomination were demonetised, the government replaced it new notes swiftly of the same denomination and of higher denomination of Rs 2,000.”

Mr Murthy underlined that only an expert can explain why this happened. “I could not understand. You better talk to the experts,” he told the students. Highlighting on the information technology (IT) industry the Infosys co-founder pointed out that the country did not give importance to the low-tech manufacturing unlike China or Japan since 1950s.

Expressing his regret over the early exit of the children from education he observed that it was unfortunate that 75 per cent school going children in the country drop out before reaching Class 8. Mr Murthy noted, “So when they need jobs when they turn 22. 

However they are only suitable for jobs in low-tech manufacture. The economists should have given a thought about them 1950 onwards.”

He also called for striking a balance between automation and human beings. Mr Murthy explained, “We need to strike a balance and we should be internationally competitive in products and services. We may slow down automation for the domestic purposes. But we are able take a decision. We will not adopt automation up to a certain level of our manufacture or services.”