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UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India

About UNESCO:

 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.

 Founded in 1945

 It’s objective is to develop the “Intellectual and Moral solidarity of Mankind” as a means of building lasting peace.

About World Heritage Sites:

 It is a place that is listed by UNESCO due to its special cultural or physical significance.

 The list of World Heritage Sites is maintained by the international 'World Heritage Programme', administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.

 An international treaty called the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.

Types of Sites:

1. Cultural heritage:

 These sites include hundreds of historic buildings and town sites, important archaeological sites, and works of monumental sculpture or painting.

2. Natural heritage:

 These sites are restricted to those natural areas that:

a. Furnish outstanding examples of Earth’s record of life or its geologic processes

b. Provide excellent examples of ongoing ecological and biological evolutionary processes

c. Contain natural phenomena that are rare, unique, superlative, or of outstanding beauty

d. Furnish habitats for rare or endangered animals or plants or are sites of exceptional biodiversity.

3. Mixed heritage:

✶ These sites contain elements of both natural and cultural significance.

Note:

 At present (2022), there are 40 World Heritage Sites located in India. (32 cultural sites, 7 natural sites, and 1 mixed-criteria site.)

I. Cultural Sites in India :

1. Ajanta Caves (1983):

 Maharashtra

 Buddhist cave Monuments dated from the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C.

 During the Gupta period (5th and 6th centuries A.D.)

 Paintings and sculptures masterpieces of Buddhist religious art.

2. Taj Mahal (1983):

 Uttar Pradesh

 Built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by order of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan

3. Ellora Caves (1983):

 Maharashtra

 Devoted to Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism

 Dating from A.D. 600 to 1000

4. Agra Fort (1983):

 Uttar Pradesh

 16th-century Mughal monument

 Jahangir Palace and the Khas Mahal, built by Shah Jahan

 Audience halls, such as the Diwan-i-Khas etc

5. Sun Temple, Konark (1984):

✶ Orissa

 Built in the 13th century

 Representation of the sun god Surya’s chariot

✶ Its 24 wheels are decorated with symbolic designs and it is led by a team of six horses.

6. Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram (1984):

 Tamil Nadu

 Founded by the Pallava kings (7th and 8th centuries.)

 Known especially for its rathas (temples in the form of chariots), mandapas (cave sanctuaries)

7. Khajuraho Group of Monuments (1986):

 Madhya Pradesh

 Temples at Khajuraho were built during the Chandella dynasty

 Between 950 AD and 1050 AD

8. Group of Monuments at Hampi (1986):

 Karnataka

 Grandiose site of Hampi was the capital of the Kingdom of Vijayanagar.

 These Dravidian temples and palaces were built by rulers of Vijaynagar between the 14th and 16th centuries.

9. Fatehpur Sikri (1986):

✶ Uttar Pradesh

 16th century by the Emperor Akbar.

 Fatehpur Sikri (the City of Victory)

 It contains an array of monuments including one of the largest mosques in India- the Jama Masjid.

10. Churches and Convents of Goa (1986):

 Goa

 Particularly the Basilica of Bom Jesus indicate commencement of evangelization in Asia.

 The Basilica of Bom Jesus also houses the sacred tomb of St. Francis Xavier.

11. Elephanta Caves (1987):

✶ Located at Elephanta island or island of Gharapuri (literally- ‘City of Caves’) close to Mumbai.

 A collection of rock art connected to the Shaivite cult.

 Constructed around the mid-5th to 6th centuries AD.

12. Great Chola Temples (1987):

 Built by kings of the Chola empire

✶ It includes Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur, Brihadisvara Temple at Gangaikondacholisvaram and Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram.

13. Group of Monuments at Pattadakal (1987):

 Karnataka

✶ Unique blend of architectural forms from northern and southern India.

 Under the Chalukya dynasty during the 7th and 8th centuries.

 It comprises nine Hindu temples as well as a Jain sanctuary including the Temple of Virupaksha.

14. Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi (1989):

 Madhya Pradesh

✶ Oldest Buddhist sanctuary in existence

 Until 12th century A.D. it is the major Buddhist centre in India.

15. Qutub Minar and it Monuments (1993):

✶ Delhi

 Red sandstone structure

✶ Other monuments include Alai Darwaza, Quwwat ul Islam mosque.

16. Humayun’s Tomb (1993):

 Delhi

 Built-in 1570

 The first garden-tomb to be constructed in India.

17. Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (1999):

 This site includes three railways

 Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

 Nilgiri Mountain Railway: (Started in 1891 and completed till 1908, is a 46-km long metre-gauge singletrack railway in Tamil Nadu.)

 Kalka Shimla Railway

18. Mahabodhi Temple Complex, Bodh Gaya (2002):

✶ Bihar

 Earlier built by Emperor Asoka in the 3rd century B.C.

 But the present structure dates back to the 5th or 6th centuries.

✶ One of the earliest Buddhist temples built entirely in brick

19. Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (1993):

 Madhya Pradesh

 Located within the foothills of Vindhya range

 Paintings that date back to the Mesolithic, and other periods succeeding it.

20. Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus or Victoria Terminus, Mumbai (2004):

 Designed by the British architect F. W. Stevens

 It became symbol of Bombay as the ‘Gothic City’.

21. Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park:

 Gujarat

✶ Includes prehistoric (chalcolithic) sites

 It includes, among other vestiges, fortifications, palaces, religious buildings, residential precincts, agricultural structures and water installations, from the 8th to 14th centuries.

✶ The Kalikamata Temple on top of Pavagadh Hill is considered to be an important shrine.

22. Nilgiri Mountain Railways (2005)

23. Red Fort Complex (2007):

 Delhi

✶ This was built as the palace fort of Shahjahanabad, the capital of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan

 It is named after its immense walls of red sandstone.

 Red Fort is a reflection of the acme of Mughal architectural innovation and craftsmanship.

 The row of pavilions are connected by a continuous water channel known as Nahr-i-Behisht (Stream of Paradise).

24. Kalka-Shimla Railway (2008)

✶ Himachal Pradesh

25. Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (2010):

❖ Rajasthan

 It is an astronomical observation site built in the early 18th century. It includes a set of some 20 main fixed instruments.

❖ An expression of the astronomical skills and cosmological concepts.

26. Hill forts of Rajasthan (2013):

 Rajasthan

 Includes six majestic forts in Chittorgarh; Kumbhalgarh; Sawai Madhopur; Jhalawar; Jaipur, and Jaisalmer.

27. Rani Ki Vav, The Queen’s Stepwell (2014):

 Gujarat

 Situated on the banks of Saraswati river

❖ Step well flaunts the Maru-Gurjara architectural style

 Designed in the form of an inverted temple

28. Archeological Site of Nalanda Mahavihara (Nalanda University) 2016:

 Bihar

❖ Remains of a monastic and scholastic institution dating from the 3rd century BCE to the 13th century CE.

 Includes stupas, shrines, viharas

 Most ancient university of the Indian Subcontinent.

29. The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier (2016):

 Includes 17 sites spread across 7 countries stands as a testimony of a new form of architectural expression

 These sites, in totality, propagate ideals of the Modern movement

 They considered as a significant response to fundamental issues of architecture and society in the 20th century.

 Complexe du Capitole, Chandigarh, The Museum of Western Art in Tokyo (Japan), the House of Dr Curutchet in La Plata (Argentina), Unitéd’habitation in Marseille (France) etc, are some of the well-known sites included in this property.

30. Historic City of Ahmedabad (2017):

 Located on the bank of Sabarmati

 Founded by Sultan Ahmad Shah in the 15th century.

✪ Harmonious existence of diverse religions

 It includes the famous Bhadra citadel accompanied by various mosques, tombs as well as numerous Hindu and Jain temples.

32. Jaipur City (2020):

 Rajasthan

✪ Founded in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II.

Dholavira:

✪ Gujarat

✪ ancient city of Dholavira, the southern centre of the Harappan Civilization

 Best preserved urban settlements

Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple:

 Telangana

✪ Rudreshwara, popularly known as Ramappa Temple

✪ Shiva temple

✪ Built during the Kakatiyan period (1123–1323 CE) under rulers Rudradeva and Recharla Rudra.

 

II. Natural Sites in India

1. Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (1985):

 Assam

 Manas Wildlife Sanctuary is a biodiversity hotspot

 Forested hills, alluvial grasslands and tropical evergreen forests

 Provides a habitable environment to a range of endangered species such as- tiger, greater onehorned rhino, swamp deer, pygmy hog and Bengal florican.

2. Kaziranga National Park (1985):

✦ Assam

Inhabited by the world’s largest population of onehorned rhinoceroses

3. Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur (1985):

 Rajasthan

✦ It served as a duck shooting reserve till the end of 19th century.

✦ In 1982, it was declared as national park

 It serves as a wintering ground to Palaearctic migratory waterfowl, critically endangered Siberian Crane as well as to globally threatened-Greater Spotted Eagle and Imperial Eagle.

4. Sundarban National Park (1987):

✦ West Bengal

✦ Ganges delta

 World’s largest area of mangrove forests

5. Nanda Devi National Park (1998) and Valley of Flowers (2005):

 Uttarakhand

 Himalayan landscapes and fall within the boundaries of the state of Uttarakhand.

 Nanda Devi National Park boasts rugged and high-mountain wilderness and is dominated by India’s second-highest mountain-the peak of Nanda Devi.

6. Western Ghats (2012):

✦ Western Ghats consist of a chain of mountains

 Passing from the states of Kerala, Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

 It is recognized as one of the world’s eight ‘hottest hotspots’ of biological diversity.

7. Great Himalayan National Park (2014):

✦ Characterized by high alpine peaks, alpine meadows and riverine forests.

 Encloses glacial and snow meltwater sources of several rivers as well as the catchment area.

 It is a biodiversity hotspot with 25 types of forests.

 

III. Mixed Site in India

1. Khangchendzonga National Park (2016):

 Sikkim

 National Park is dominated by the world's thirdhighest peak, Mount Khangchendzonga.

 Steep-sided valleys, snowclad mountains and various lakes and glaciers

 It is home to a sacred site of one of the world's leading religious traditions.

 Unique example of co-existence and exchange between different religious traditions and people.

Benefits of the World Heritage Site Status:

 Brings international attention

✸ Site becomes protected under the Geneva Convention against destruction or misuse during wartime.

 Promotes close ties with the United Nations and provides with prestige and support.

 If required, UNESCO provides funds for restoration, preservation, and training.

✸ Brings tourism to the site ensuring economic benefits.

Posted Date: 10/03/2022

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