A recent remark by Infosys co founder Narayan Murti sparked a debate on work, productivity and the merit of long working hours. Narayan Muti, in a podcast, had said the youth in India must work 70 hours a week to contribute to the nation's progress. However, believe it or not, Indians are already the sixth most hard working in the world as per the International Labour Organization's data. Now this ranking is based on taking the average number of hours per week for each employed person in each country, which for India works out to be 47.7 hours. This shows that Indians work longer than workers in China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom. However, it is crucial to note that the International Labour Organisation data also shows an inverse correlation between prosperity and weekly working hours. To put this simply, countries with higher GDP per capita tend to have shorter working hours. While the discussion over working hours is far from over. It raises pertinent questions about India's path towards enhancing economic competitiveness, while of course prioritising the well being of its workforce,
