The Economic Times

Once a bus conductor, now a Padma Awardee: Who is Anke Gowda, the man who built Indias largest free library with two-million-books

Anke Gowda, a 75-year-old former bus conductor from Karnataka, has been awarded the Padma Shri 2026 for creating Pustak Mane, Indias largest free-access library. Housing over two million books in 20 languages, including rare manuscripts and dictionaries, the library serves students, researchers, civil service aspirants, and even Supreme Court judges. Gowda devoted decades and most of his income to building this public resource, living simply with his wife within the library, and continues to expand and organise it under the Anke Gowda Jnana Pratishthana Foundation.