Bus Conductor to Library Tycoon: Anke Gowda's 2 Million Books
Bus Conductor to Library Tycoon: Anke Gowda's 2 Million Books
75-year-old Anke Gowda built a vast, free-access library with over 2 million books, earning Padma Shri as an Unsung Hero.
A 75-year-old Kannada library crusader has been recognised in the Padma Awards 2026 in the Unsung Heroes category. Anke Gowda, once a bus conductor, is the driving force behind Pustak Mane, a free-access library that houses more than 2 million books across 20 languages. The collection also includes around 5 lakh rare foreign books and roughly 5,000 dictionaries, making it one of the world’s most expansive community libraries. The library is openly accessible to everyone—from local students to Supreme Court judges—and Gowda, along with his wife Vijayalakshmi, lives inside the library complex to maintain the collection. He manages the library with the help of their son, Sagar, and is working to formally organize it under the Anke Gowda Jnana Pratishthana Foundation. The dedication behind this vast repository is deeply personal, a lifetime spent building a sanctuary for knowledge.
Born into a farming family in the Mandya district, Gowda had limited access to books during his childhood. His love for reading took root at 20 when a college professor inspired him to start collecting books while he worked as a bus conductor. He later left his job to pursue a master’s degree in Kannada literature and spent roughly three decades working in a sugar factory, all while continuing to expand his library. The initiative began as a personal passion and grew into a public treasure, designed to serve readers regardless of their means or background.
Pustak Mane’s scale is matched by its accessibility. The library’s multilingual catalog opens doors for students, researchers, and educators alike. Gowda’s work emphasizes the value of knowledge as a public good—unrestricted access, no membership fees, and a living tribute to the power of books. As he continues to grow the collection, the Padma award recognises not just the breadth of his library, but the resilience and humility that fuel a lifelong mission: to place books where they can change lives.
