Our Founder
Late Sri Ammembal Subba Rao Pai
“He was a man, take him all in all, I shall not look upon his like again”. Canara with its moral ideals, rich core values and fusion of cultural ethos was pioneered by a great legendary soul, Late Sri Ammembal Subba Rao Pai.
Late Sri Ammembal Subba Rao Pai
1852-1909
Late Sri Ammembal Subba Rao Pai with the sole purpose of imparting the youth of Dakshina Kannada with modern education blended with ancient cultural values, founded the Canara High School Association (CHSA).
He was a great social reformer and philanthropist with a rare combination of the ideal and the practical. His concern for social upliftment gave birth to the Canara High School, Mangalore in 1891 – the century old precursor to the conglomeration of Canara educational institutions of today, while his spirit of enterprise gave birth to yet another national institution – Canara Bank in 1906.
Born on 19th November, 1852 at Mulky near Mangalore, Ammembal Subba Rao Pai underwent schooling at Government High School, Mangalore. As a boy, Subba Rao was known to be mischievous, mediocre in studies, fond of play, and was a ringleader among the boys. But he was deeply respectful towards his elders and his esteem for his father amounted to reverence. It was the early demise of his mother that is believed to have profoundly influenced him to take studies seriously.
Lawyer & Banker
Subba Rao, a lawyer and a banker by profession, an educationist and social reformer by temperament, was the foremost among the pre-independence luminaries who shaped the future of Dakshina Kannada District and of the GSB Community.
Sri Subba Rao’s versatility was not confined to the legal profession alone. Along with his professional work in the mornings, the evenings were devoted to social work. He kept himself fully informed about the fast-changing world. His zeal and love for mankind touched life at all points. He was deeply saddened at the lethargy of people towards education and realized that there was no future for people without widespread general and higher education in professional and technical courses. Because of his enormous efforts, our young men are now seen holding high offices both in the Engineering and Medical services.
The seed sown by our founder more than a century ago has grown into a huge tree providing shelter to the society in terms of education, employment opportunities and financial support; thus, contributing to the welfare, prosperity and progress of the society. A visionary far ahead of his times, Ammembal Subba Rao departed to the heavenly abode on 25th July, 1909. Though he shrugged off his mortal remains, he became an immortal soul, and his philanthropic zeal continues to touch the lives of innumerable folks even today. Our institution relentlessly draws enormous inspiration from our founder who continues to be the beacon of all our endeavours to lead us on the path of righteousness.
