Kannada Book Authority distributes books to schools and colleges in Shivamogga

HL Omshivaprakash, digital archivist and entrepreneur, will deliver a lecture on the digitization of Kannada literary works at Shivamogga on Friday. | Photo credit: SK Dinesh

The Kannada Book Authority distributed books worth over ₹15,000 each to 20 educational institutions at a program held in Shivamogga on Friday.

The books were received by representatives of 19 Government First Level Colleges and Public Schools of Karnataka spread across Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru and Davanagere districts.

Srikantha Kudige, a retired Kannada professor who initiated the programme, lamented that in recent times Kannada book publishing has hardly received any support. He said the state government has also contributed to the current situation by failing to regularly purchase books and distribute them to public libraries as a measure to promote reading habit.

HL Omshivaprakash, digital archivist and entrepreneur, delivered a talk on the digitization of Kannada literary works. He detailed the activities of the non-profit organization Servants of Knowledge, through which thousands of Kannada books, including rare literary works, have been digitized and made available to the public. The organization has digitized 45,000 books from the National Law School of India University, Bengaluru, besides more than 4,500 PhD and MPhil theses from Hampi University. According to him, the digitized content was available to those interested in research.

Similarly, he said that Ninasam plays at Heggodu and several Yakshagana presentations have been made available online through the Sanchi Foundation.

Kannada Book Authority Chairman Manasa, Member Akshatha Humchadakatte, President Shivamogga Kannada Sahitya Parishat D. Manjunath, Registrar of DVS Institutions SK Manjunath and Head of Kannada Department, DVS College were among the participants in the programme.

Published – 11 Sep 2026 20:15 IST