In a moving tribute to a life of quiet sacrifice, Anke Gowda, 75, was officially recognized at the Padma Awards 2026 for his inclusion in the ‘Unsung Heroes’ category. This prestigious Padma Shri honors a man who rose from a routine bus conductor to the architect of a monumental literary legacy.
For over fifty years, Gowda channeled his passion into Pustak Mane, a vast open access library built at incredible personal cost. To finance this sanctuary of knowledge, he devoted approximately 80% of his career income to the acquisition of books and even made the ultimate sacrifice by selling the family home.
Who is Anke Gowda?
Born into a farming family in Mandya district, he had limited access to books during his childhood. His love of reading began at the age of 20, when his college professor inspired him to start collecting books while working as a bus driver.
After this, Anke Gowda started collecting books while working as a bus conductor. He left his job to pursue a master’s degree in Kannada literature before working for around three decades in a sugar factory.
He created the world’s largest open access library – Pustak Mane – housing more than 2 million books in 20 languages, as well as rare manuscripts. It also contains around 5 lakh rare foreign books and around 5,000 dictionaries in several languages.
The library is available to everyone, from local students to Supreme Court justices, with no membership fee.
To maintain the collection, Gowda and his wife Vijayalakshmi live in the library. Gowda manages the library with their son, Sagar, and is working to formally organize it under the Anke Gowda Jnana Pratishthana Foundation as its collection continues to expand.
“Researchers and students mainly come to me. Even civil service aspirants and Supreme Court judges have come to refer to the books here. There is no membership fee or admission fee. Anyone can come, read and gain knowledge,” he said while talking to Mathrubhumi News.
