“I used to think socialism was the answer to India’s problems. Not anymore,” Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy said while speaking at the India Forward talk series organised by the Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Kochi.
“The change came following my years living abroad, where I saw clean roads, efficient public services, and trains running on time. I realised something was wrong in my thinking,” Narayana said, adding, “I was a confused Leftist. Now, I’m a believer in ‘compassionate capitalism’.”
He said his experience has led him to embrace markets not as ideology, but as a tool. “They are mechanisms to convert individual ambition into collective prosperity,” Narayana pointed out.
“Compassionate capitalism,” the Padma Vibhushan recipient highlighted, “remains the only sustainable path to long-term growth in India.” His remarks come at a time when economic models are key talking points in Kerala’s political discourse.
Narayana also said there is a great need to replace complacency with high aspiration. “We must refuse to be ordinary,” he said, adding, “If our brightest people continue to prefer government jobs as the safest option, we are burning our best fuel before the engine even starts.”
He also cautioned against India’s continued reliance on cheap labour, calling it a trap in the age of automation. The focus, he said, must shift to productivity, innovation and precision.
“Countries like Singapore, South Korea and China advanced not by chance, but through design, and a refusal to accept mediocrity,” Narayana said.
For India’s much-needed transformation, he listed five pillars. They are high aspiration, a free-market framework anchored in productivity, trust and integrity in public life, informed and technically competent leadership, and a strong social contract that prioritises public good.
“India has the data, the demographics and the digital infrastructure. What we need is character,” Narayana said, whilst also calling corruption an “economic catastrophe” and dismissing jugaad as a strategy.
Narayana also briefly praised Kerala’s civic culture, particularly its emphasis on maintaining public spaces and cleanliness. “If the rest of India can follow Kerala in this, we will progress much faster,” he said.