He was 75.

Verma breathed his last at 10:30 pm and is survived by his wife and a daughter.

He had been suffering from a lung disorder for quite some time and was admitted to AIIMS on Saturday.

The mortal remains of Verma would be consigned to flames at the Lodhi Road crematorium at 3:00 pm tomorrow.

Born on April 3, 1929, Verma pioneered the 'new short story' (Nayee Kahani) form in Hindi literature alongwith writers Mohan Rakesh, Bhisham Sahni, Kamleshwar and Amarkant. He is best known for his short stories. His recent story published in 'Kathadesh' was about two gay boys.

Verma was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship earlier this year and is also the recepient of the Jnanpith Award, the country's highest literary honour.

Some of his popular novels inclue 'Antima Aranya', 'Raat ka Reporter', 'Lal Tin Ka Chhat'. His short stories 'Kauve aur Kaala Paani' won him the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1985.

Born in Shimla, Verma studied at the Delhi University from where he earned his Masters of Art degree. He studied Czech at the Oriental Institute in Prague and has been a Fellow with the International Institute of Asian Studies.

Among his non-fiction writings is 'Kal ka Jokhima', an investigation of Indic arts in the 20th Century. His diary, 'Dhund se Uthati Dhun' describes his life in detail while addressing issues related to Hindi literature.

His works have been widely translated in various Indian languages.

Verma wrote his first short story for a students' magazine in early 1950s. In 1959, with the publication of 'Parinde', his first book of short stories, he was acclaimed by renowned critics as the first signature of the new story movement of Hindi literature.