Rock Garden creator Nek Chand no more

Chandigarh: Nek Chand, creator of the iconic Rock Garden, who has amazed people for decades with his unique sculptures made from waste, died on Friday at a hospital following cardiac arrest.

 

The 90-year-old architectural autodidact had been ailing and was admitted to a private hospital here for the past few days. He was shifted to PGIMER on Thursday evening where he died shortly past midnight after suffering cardiac arrest, officials said.

 

The Chandigarh Union Territory administration has declared a holiday in its offices on Friday. “The cremation will take place on Saturday evening,” Chandigarh’s Additional Home Secretary S.B. Deepak Kumar said. 

 

The Padma Shri awardee, whose 90th birthday was celebrated on December 15, had millions of fans across the globe. Working as a roads inspector of the Public Works Department in Punjab from 1951, Nek Chand had quietly built his magical kingdom clearing a little forest patch near the famous Sukhna lake here to create a small garden.

 

Waste like broken crockery, electrical fittings, glass bangles, bathroom tiles, wash basins and bicycle frames were used to make mosaic sculptures of men, women, animals and gods. The iconic Rock Garden, opened in 1976, is now spread over an area of forty acres and more than 2.5 lakh people visit it every year.