Harsh Goenka supports 90-hour work week, Piyush Goyal amid startup row: ‘If India wants to compete with US…’

RPG Group chairman Harsh Goenka has backed Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal amid the latest uproar over the latter's criticism of the Indian startup ecosystem. Goenka also seemingly supported N.R. Narayana Murthy's controversial 70-hour workweek concept, claiming that Murthy and Goyal were not being ‘literal’ but ‘directional’ in their respective statements.

While supporting their statements, Goenka explained that the two leaders were simply asking what India is really building through their remarks. "They were asking: What are we really building? " Goenka said in his latest post.

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Harsh Goenka on how India can compete with US

Goenka, while rallying behind Murthy's 70-hour work week concept, which caused a major divide among India Inc leaders earlier this year, also clarified that ‘this is not about glorifying burnout’, but shifting the national mindset.

Amid the latest global tariff war, Goenka has also said that if India wants to compete with the US and China, it needs to build with ambition. The industrialist highlighted sectors such as robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and energy that ‘move the needle' for India to focus on long-term growth.

Goenka took to the microblogging platform ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) and said in a post on Saturday, April 5,

"When Murthy and Subrahmanyan spoke of 70-90 hour work weeks, and Piyush Goyal questioned startups making vegan ice creams and chasing 10-minute deliveries, they weren’t being literal—they were being directional. They were asking: what are we really building?

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If India wants to compete with the US or China, we can’t just focus on comfort, convenience, and brands. We need to build with ambition—AI, deep tech, robotics, clean energy—sectors that move the needle.

This isn’t about glorifying burnout. It’s about shifting the national mindset—from ease to effort, from quick wins to long-term value," said Goenka in his post.

Piyush Goyal's criticism on India's startup ecosystem

While speaking at the Startup Mahakumbh 2025 event on April 3, 2025, Goenka's remarks come after Union Minister Piyush Goyal slammed Indian billionaire kids for opening ice cream and cookie businesses and calling them startups instead of focusing on the nation's technological growth.

Questioning India's vision for the future, Goyal asked whether or not India wants to focus on tech advancement or if people are satisfied with ice cream brand startups. “Fancy ice cream and cookies. I know at least three or four billionaires whose children make one brand or the other, very fancy ice cream and cookies, and run a very successful business,” said Goyal in his address.

The Union Minister shared his analysis of the startup success stories in India and said, “And I have no complaint against that. But is that the destiny of India? Is the future of India satisfied with that?” Goyal also questioned the strategies of these new and successful startups and said that the brands are using fancy terms and good packaging to call themselves startups in India.

Also Read: Ashneer Grover thanks Piyush Goyal for ‘starting healthy debate’ on startups amid controversy on ‘dukaandari’ comment

Harsh Goenka's stand on 90-hour workweek

In January, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman S N Subrahmanyan sparked an online debate by advocating for a 90-hour work week and suggesting employees should even give up Sundays. After the heated controversy, D-Street analysts and India Inc. experts soon picked sides for or against the notion. This came after Murthy advocated for a 70-hour workweek last year.

Goenka had expressed his concern about the idea of working 90 hours a week following the L&T chairman's comments on work-life balance. Goenka had stated that with such a practice, why not rename Sunday to ‘Sun-duty’ and make day offs a mythical concept?

“90 hours a week? Why not rename Sunday to ‘Sun-duty’ and make ‘day off’ a mythical concept! Working hard and smart is what I believe in, but turning life into a perpetual office shift? That’s a recipe for burnout, not success. Work-life balance isn’t optional, it’s essential. Well, that’s my view! #WorkSmartNotSlave,” Goenka had said in a post X earlier this year.