India, Jan. 25 -- 75-year-old Anke Gowda has been recognised in the 2026 Padma Awards under the "Unsung Heroes" category.

Once a bus conductor, Gowda spent over five decades building Pustaka Mane, one of India's largest free-access libraries, a sprawling free-access library created through extraordinary personal sacrifice.

Located in Haralahalli village near Srirangapatna in Mandya district, Pustaka Mane, meaning "Book House", houses more than 20 lakh books. The collection spans over 20 Indian and foreign languages and covers subjects such as literature, science, technology, philosophy, mythology and history.

The library also preserves rare manuscripts dating back to 1832, nearly 5,000 dictionaries and thousands of magazines and histor...