Recently, Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel said that Six sites have been added to India’s tentative list of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) world heritage sites.
Six Sites:
These six sites include the Ganga ghats in Varanasi, temples of Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu and the Satpura Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh, Megalithic site of Hire Benkal, Maratha Military Architecture in Maharashtra, & Bhedaghat-Lametaghat in Narmada Valley- Jabalpur.
Submission of Proposal:
Archaeological Survey of India had submitted a proposal for India’s 9 places for inclusion in tentative list of UNESCO, where six sites have selected in tentative lists of UNESCO World Heritage Site.
With the addition of these six sites, UNESCO has 48 proposals in the tentative list of India.
As per Operational Guidelines, 2019, it is mandatory to put any monument/site on the tentative list before it is considered for the final nomination dossier. India has 48 sites in the tentative list as of now.
About Six sites of India’s tentative list of UNESCO World heritage sites:
1. Satpura Tiger Reserve:
It is located in the Hoshangabad District of Madhya Pradesh in India. Satpura National Park is home to 26 species of the Himalayan region including reptiles, and 42 species of Nilgiri areas. The forest has the largest tiger population.
2. Ganga Ghats of Varanasi:
The Ganga Ghats of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, are riverfront steps leading to the banks of the River Ganges. On the bank of the Ganga river people of Hindu religon take holy bath & perform various Hindu religious rituals. It has Hindu mythological significance.
3. Megalithic site of Hire Benkal:
Hire Benkal is a megalithic site is located in Karnataka, India. The 2,800-years-old megalithic site of Hire Benkal contains roughly 400 megalithic funerary monuments.
4. Maratha Military Architecture in Maharashtra:
Under the theme of Marathi military architecture 14 forts from 17th century has been selected. The historical forts constructed in the Maratha military architecture style belong to the era of Shivaji.
These 14 forts are following:
Raigad fort, Rajgad Fort, Shivneri Fort, Torna Fort, Lohagad, Salher Fort, Mulher Fort, Rangana Fort, Ankai-Tankai Fort, Kasa Fort, Sindhudurg, Alibag Fort, Suvarnadurg, and Khanderi Fort
5. Bhedaghat-Lametaghat in Narmada Valley- Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh:
Bhedaghat is often referred to as the Grand Canyon of India. It is part of the river Narmada Valley, one of India’s largest and west flowing river. Bhedaghat is the only place in Narmada River’s course of about 1312kms, where the river falls into a 30-meter deep gorge and flows in between marble rocks. Several dinosaur fossils have been found in the Narmada valley particularly in Bhedaghat-Lametghat area of Jabalpur.
6. Temples of Kanchipuram:
The temple town of Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu situated on the banks of River Vegavathi, this historical city once had 1,000 temples, of which only 126 (108 Shaiva and 18 Vaishnava) now remain.
Its rich legacy has been the endowment of the Pallava dynasty, during 6th and 7th centuries. Its architectural gems are a fine example of Dravidian styles.
World Heritage Sites in India:
India has 38 world heritage sites, & Jaipur city, Rajasthan is the latest site which was included in the list.