Archive · 12 Aug 2026
Ex-IAS officer Chiranjiv Singh's literary journey from Punjab to Kannada
Chiranjiv Singh is an important man in India who worked for the government and for an organization called UNESCO.
He grew up in a state called Punjab, where his family had books in many different languages.
When he was a child, he even invented his own alphabets just for fun.
He chose to work in Karnataka because he wanted to learn its language, Kannada.
He arrived there in 1970 and fell in love with the villages, folk songs, and culture of the state.
In his government jobs, he helped promote Kannada books, music, and art.
A journalist friend asked him to write about his life, and his wife helped write down his stories.
His book, Yaava Janmada Maitri, came out in 2021.
It shares his memories and his thoughts about things happening around him.
Now he writes poetry in Punjabi and a book about Punjabi literature.
Retired IAS officer and former UNESCO Ambassador Chiranjiv Singh wrote the Kannada book Yaava Janmada Maitri, published in 2021.
A Punjab native with a lifelong passion for languages, Singh first came to Karnataka in April 1970 as a probationary assistant commissioner in Moka village, Bellary.
He headed the Information and Publicity Department and later the Kannada and Culture Department, promoting Kannada culture during the tenure of Chief Minister Devaraj Urs.
The book began as a fortnightly column suggested by journalist Sugata Srinivasaraju and was transcribed by Singh's wife, translator Rosy D'Souza.
Singh, who was close to Kannada cultural figures including P Lankesh, U R Ananthamurthy and Gangubai Hangal, is now writing a Punjabi-language critique of Punjabi literature.
- Who
- Chiranjiv Singh, a retired IAS officer and former UNESCO Ambassador originally from Punjab.
- What
- His literary journey and his Kannada book Yaava Janmada Maitri, which draws on his memories of his early years in Karnataka.
- When
- He first came to Karnataka in April 1970; the book was published in 2021.
- Where
- Punjab (his home state) and Karnataka, including Moka village in Bellary, Chikmagalur and Bengaluru.
- Why
- He was driven by a lifelong passion for languages and love of Karnataka's culture, and was encouraged to write by journalist Sugata Srinivasaraju.
- Person
- Chiranjiv Singh, retired IAS officer and former UNESCO Ambassador
- Book
- Yaava Janmada Maitri, published in 2021
- First Karnataka posting
- Probationary assistant commissioner, Moka village, Bellary, April 1970
- Key roles
- Headed Information and Publicity Department; led Kannada and Culture Department
- Languages in his life
- Grew up with books in English, Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu; learned Bengali to read Tagore
- Current projects
- Punjabi-language critique of Punjabi literature; five collections of Punjabi poetry
- Book collaborators
- Suggested by Sugata Srinivasaraju; transcribed by wife Rosy D'Souza