Last rites of 'Statue of Unity' sculptor Ram Sutar performed in Noida

Noida, Dec 18 (PTI) The last rites of renowned sculptor Ram Vanji Sutar were performed at around 3 pm on Thursday at the Sector 94 crematorium here, with Union minister Ramdas Athawale and several local leaders joining in to pay their final respects to the Padma Bhushan awardee.

Senior officials from the district administration and police department were also present at the cremation, while several others visited Sutar's residence in Sector 19 earlier in the day to meet his family and offer their condolences.

Sutar, best known as the creator of Statue of Unity, the world’s tallest statue depicting Vallabhbhai Patel at Kevadiya in Gujarat, passed away late Wednesday night at his Noida residence.

He was 100 and was suffering from age-related ailments.

"It is with profound grief that we inform you of the passing of my father Shri Ram Vanji Sutar on December 17 midnight at our residence," his son Anil Sutar said in a note shared with the press on Thursday.

Born on February 19, 1925, in a humble family at Gondur village in Maharashtra's Dhule district, Sutar showed a natural inclination towards sculpting from an early age.

A gold medallist from the Sir JJ School of Art and Architecture in Mumbai, he went on to carve a distinguished career spanning several decades.

Among his most celebrated works are the statues of Mahatma Gandhi in a meditative pose and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj astride a horse in the Parliament complex.

His magnum opus, the Statue of Unity, commemorates Vallabhbhai Patel, the first deputy prime minister and home minister of Independent India.

Athawale told reporters that Sutar's demise was "an irreparable loss not only for Maharashtra but for the entire country".

"On behalf of the government of India, I offer my heartfelt condolences to the family of Ram Sutar. His son Anil Sutar will carry forward his unfinished work and continue his legacy. The name of Ram Sutar will forever live on among us," he said.

Sutar was conferred the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2016. He was also honoured with the Maharashtra Bhushan award. PTI COR KIS ARI