Infosys Co-founder, NR Narayan Murthy, took a jibe at India’s coaching culture on Monday, September 9. He said coaching institutes are promoting rote learning. He emphasised that real-life skills such as observational, analytical, and hypothesis-testing skills are more important to excel in any exams, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.

Murthy was speaking at the launch of Paul Hewitt’s 13th edition of Conceptual Physics in Bengaluru.

The 78-year-old questioned the effectiveness of coaching classes, especially in hubs of coaching institutes like Kota, and criticised the high-pressure environment that overburdened the students there.

“Coaching classes are the wrong way to help children pass examinations, I don’t believe in coaching classes,” he said, as per a report by Money Control.

The trend among Indian parents to depend on coaching classes is concerning and encourages the incompetent nature of the Indian school system. He observed that several students turn to tutoring centres as a result of their lack of engagement with the school curriculum. He also added that most students who opt for coaching classes don't listen to teachers in classrooms.

“The growing coaching industry, now worth over Rs 58,000 crore annually and expanding at 19-20% per year, underscores a systemic problem," Murthy said.