Good candidates key to good governance, says Infosys boss

The first step toward improving governance is to vote for good candidates, said N R Narayana Murthy, co-founder and executive chairman, Infosys, at the second convocation of IIT Hyderabad near here.

“For improving governance, first step is to vote for the best candidates,” Murthy said, adding that enduring institutions and effective watchdogs of civil society were necessary for democracy to succeed. Patriotism involves voting for the best candidate irrespective of religion or caste, he said, delivering the convocation address. Patriotism did not mean just singing the national anthem or draping oneself in the national flag, but it meant working ethically, “with the interfaces of the governments to make public governance strong, and enduring”, he said.

Murthy recalled that when he left IIT Kanpur for Paris in early seventies, India was seen by most foreigners as a pitiable place, but now the world expects India to be one of the leaders to solve global problems.

Speaking on the occasion, BVR Mohan Reddy, chairman of Board of Governors, IIT Hyderabad, and chairman of Infotech, said that IITs had got a global recognition and IITians had made contributions to technology and research in the most advanced countries.

UB Desai, director, IIT Hyderabad, said 195 students are graduating this year, of which 3 are PhD students, 113 are BTech students, 20 are MSc students and 59 are MTech students.  The director added that IIT Hyderabad plans to move out to its own campus at Kandi  village by July 2014 .