President Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday condoled the death of writer U.R. Ananthamurthy, saying India will remember his invaluable contribution to literature.

In a statement, the president said: "Nation will always remember Ananthamurthy's invaluable contribution to literature."

The 82-year-old renowned Kannada writer and Jnanpith Award winner, Ananthamurthy died in Bangalore on Friday evening after a brief illness.

Born Dec 22, 1932 near Thirthahalli in Shimoga district, about 300 km from Bangalore, Ananthamurthy was the sixth recipient of the country's highest literary honour – Jnanpith Award – in Kannada, the state's native language, in 1994.

In recognition of his outstanding literary contribution, the Indian government also honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1998.

The bearded Ananthamurthy was also one of the finalists for the British Man Booker International Prize in 2013.

Ananthamurthy's works have been translated into several Indian and European languages. His main works include "Samskara","Bhava", "Bharathi Pura", and "Avasthe".