Dr. Manu Baligar (

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

: Manu Baḷigār) is an Indian

writer, author, playwright, former civil servant and the current president of

Kannada Sahitya Parishat Kannada Saahithya Parishath ( kn, ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಾಹಿತ್ಯ ಪರಿಷತ್ತು, Kannaḍa Sāhitya Pariṣattu; ) is an Indian non-profit organisation that promotes the Kannada language and its literature. Its headquarters ar ...

. He hails from

Shigli Shigli is a city located in the Shirhatti taluk of Gadag district in Karnataka. It is situated to the south of district headquarters Gadag, from Shirhatti, and from state capital Bangalore. Shigli's pin code is 582210, and the postal head ...

Gadag district Gadag is a district in the state of Karnataka, India. It was formed in 1997, when it was split from Dharwad district. As of 2011, it had a population of 1064570 (of which 35.21 percent was urban). The overall population increased by 13.14 perc ...

, and is the elder brother of V. P. Baligar, a retired

Indian Administrative Service The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the India ...

officer and former chairman of

Housing and Urban Development Corporation The Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO) is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India in India. History This institution came into existence on 25, ...

. He was a civil servant in the Karnataka Administrative Service, and retired as the commissioner of Department of Kannada and Culture,

Government of Karnataka The Government of Karnataka, abbreviated as, GoK, or simply Karnataka Government, is a democratically-elected state body with the governor as the ceremonial head to govern the Southwest Indian state of Karnataka. The governor who is appointed ...

. He was elected the president of the

, an apex body for the promotion of Kannada language, on 3 March 2016 for a term of three years which was later legally extended to five years. He has been conferred with many coveted honors including the highly prestigious

Nadoja Award The Nadoja Award ( kn, ನಾಡೋಜ ಪ್ರಶಸ್ತಿ) is a prestigious award presented annually by Kannada University, Hampi, India to eminent personalities for their contribution in various fields. The word "Nadoja" belongs to Adikavi ...

by the Hampi University in 2019 and also an honorary doctorate for literature from Karnataka University Dharwad. Also, he has been conferred with two gold medals for his exemplary work o
IRDP
during his career as a civil servant.

Works

Manu Baligar has been known for his rich contributions to both literature and bureaucracy simultaneously. He has authored over 30 books including five story compilations, six anthologies and four biographies. He also happens to be the only bureaucrat to receive an honorary doctorate from

Karnataka University Karnatak University is a public state university in Dharwad district of Karnataka state, India. The university is recognized by University Grants Commission and accredited by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). As of 2014 ...

for contributing to Kannada literature. Some of his famous works include ''Belaka Bedagu'' - compilation of his columns in

Prajavani ''Prajavani'' (Kannada:''Voice of the People'') is a leading Kannada-language broadsheet daily newspaper published in Karnataka, India. Having a readership of over 2.01 million, it is one of the largest circulated newspapers in the state. His ...

daily, ''Mylara Mahadeva'' - a play on the life of a legendary martyr, and a biography of former chief minister of Karnataka,

S. R. Kanthi Shivalingappa Rudrappa Kanthi (21 December 1908 - 25 October 1969) was the Chief Minister of Karnataka (then, Mysore State) for a brief period in 1962. He hailed from Lingayat caste in Hungund in Bagalkot district (formerly Bijapur district) in ...

. He has successfully organized and convened numerous international and national conferences on Kannada Literature including the world renowned Vishwa Kannada Sammelana held at Belagavi in 2011. He has delivered innumerable keynote lectures on Kannada literature in international literary conferences held at countries like UK, America, Australia, Nepal and Singapore. The progress and achievements of the

under his able leadership and presidency has been recorded and presented in the form of book
Kaayaka Patha
(ಕಾಯಕಪಥ) (progress during the period 03/03/2016 to 31/10/2017) an
Kaayaka Nirata
(ಕಾಯಕನಿರತ) (progress during the period 01/11/2017 to 05/10/2019) at the Parishat website. Kalashree Award Ceremony 2019 a

Awards and honours

(2019) * Lingaraja Desai Award * Ranna Sahitya Award * Goruru Sahitya Award * Vishwamanava Award (2008) * Kempegowda Sahitya Award

List of works

His works have been translated to English and many other Indian languages like Oriya, Telugu and Hindi. Many of his works have been used as textbooks in schools and universities. Some of his works are listed below.

Story compilations

* Avyaktha (1983) * Runa (1998) * Baduku Mayeya Maata (2002) * The Debt and other Stories (2004) * Kelavu Kathegalu (2005)

Poetry

* Nanna Ninnaolage (1983) * Yeddavaru Biddavaru (1994) * Saakshara Geethegalu (1994) * Niagara Mattu Jalapathagalu (1998) * Kavi Raveendrara Minchina Hanigalu (2004) * Aayda Kavanagalu (2011)

Essays and short stories

* Yekantha Mattu Yekagrathe (2004) * Belaka Bedagu (2009) * Samskruthi Vihaara (2012)

Plays

* Mylaara Mahadeva (2007)

Biographies

* Appa (2002) * Ati Virala Raajakarani S.R. Kanthi (2001) * Abdul Nazeer Saab (2005)

References

External links

Want to put Kannada literature on the global map: Baligar
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baligar, Manu Living people Writers from Karnataka Kannada-language writers People from Gadag district Indian male writers Year of birth missing (living people)