India must strengthen its education system and invest in developing skilled teachers if it aims to become a nation that creates new technologies rather than simply adopting innovations from other countries, said Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy. He has proposed a $20 billion investment over 20 years to establish a nationwide teacher training programme.
Murthy has recommended setting up 2,500 teacher training colleges across the country, with retired science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educators leading the initiative. The proposed institutions would collectively train 500,000 schoolteachers every year.
He shared his views on November 12 through a recorded address to the winners of the Infosys Prize, an annual science and research awards programme organised by the Infosys Science Foundation in Bengaluru. He emphasised the need for Indian schools to encourage independent, critical and analytical thinking among students. He also called for greater recognition and better compensation for teachers and researchers.
Murthy had first introduced this proposal in November 2023 during the announcement of that year’s Infosys Prize winners. His original plan involved bringing together 10,000 experienced retired STEM teachers from India and developed countries to lead training institutions across the country’s 28 states and 8 union territories. Each trainer would receive approximately $100,000 annually.
Under the proposed model, every group of 4 trainers would train 100 primary schoolteachers and 100 secondary schoolteachers each year. This would result in 250,000 trained teachers at each level annually. Those who complete the programme could eventually take up the role of trainers themselves, helping expand the initiative.
The estimated cost of the programme stands at approximately $1 billion annually, taking the total investment to $20 billion over 20 years. Murthy believes this would be a manageable investment for a country working towards a $5 trillion economy.
During his November 12 address, he also observed that India remains at an early stage in several areas of public governance, despite making progress in research.
Murthy, 80, co-founded Infosys in 1981 along with 6 colleagues. Under his leadership, the company grew into one of India’s largest IT services firms and played an important role in establishing Bengaluru as a global outsourcing hub. He served as the company’s CEO and later as its chairman.
The Infosys Science Foundation, established by Infosys and its founders, has been presenting the Infosys Prize since 2009 to recognise the contributions of scientists and scholars conducting research in India. Murthy is also recognised among India’s billionaires by Forbes.
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