Infosys chairman emeritus NR Narayana Murthy on Friday asked the government to be more proactive in reducing unemployment and poverty in the country.

"This is the time to request the government to be more proactive in creating, helping foreign direct investments, domestic direct investments. So that we can create millions of jobs, so that all the poor youngsters can lead a better quality of life," Murthy said on the sidelines of a function in Kolkata.

"We should encourage entrepreneurship in the country. We should encourage lots of FDI in India. That's the only way we can remove poverty and unemployment."

Asked whether government policies are moving towards job creation, Murthy said: "There is no point in simply criticizing the government. Let us look at how we can all work together in creating more and more jobs."

He was in the city to take part in a scholarship distribution programme by Anant, an education initiative of Infinity Group.