Nearly 60 properties from India on Tentative List for inclusion on World Heritage List, says govt

There are nearly 60 properties in India that find a place in the Tentative List for further inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List, according to information shared by the government in Parliament on Monday. A Tentative List is an inventory of those properties that each State Party intends to consider for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The 46th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) is being held in New Delhi from July 21 to July 31. India is hosting the key event of UNESCO for the first time.

The mound-burial system of the Ahom dynasty in Assam -- 'Moidams' -- was, on July 26, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, making it the first cultural property from the Northeast to get the coveted tag.

'Moidams' was submitted as India's nomination for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List for the year 2023-24. The site was put in the Tentative List of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2014.

In a written response to a query in Lok Sabha, Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said, "There are 57 properties in the Tentative List for further inclusion in the World Heritage List. However, as per the Operational Guidelines 2023, only one property can be submitted for the World Heritage inscription process each year. As of now, 42 properties have been inscribed on the World Heritage List."

The updated list for India, after the inclusion of centuries-old 'Moidams', is now 43 sites on the World Heritage List and 56 properties on the Tentative List, according to the website of UNESCO, which adds that out of the 195 States Parties to the World Heritage Convention, 189 have submitted a Tentative List.

Shekhawat was also asked whether the government has formulated any scheme for the protection of cultural heritage in compliance with the guidelines of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

"No, sir, there is no such scheme formulated for the protection of cultural heritage in compliance with the guidelines of UNESCO. However, India has ratified the 1972 UNESCO World Heritage Convention. All the World Heritage properties, along with other sites and monuments under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India, Ministry of Culture, are protected and conserved by funds provided by the Government of India based on their requirements and Annual Conservation Plan (ACP)," the Union minister replied.

In response to another query, he said the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) takes up conservation and maintenance work of protected monuments and sites throughout the country, including 286 in the state of Maharashtra. "Conservation and maintenance of monuments and archaeological sites is a continuous process and is taken up as per the need of monuments and availability of resources," the minister said.

Shekhawat, in his response, also shared details of expenditure incurred on conservation, preservation and environmental development of protected monuments during the last three years and till July 15 of the current financial year. The figures stand as follows -- Rs 269.57 crore (2021-22), Rs 391.93 crore (2022-23), and Rs 443.53 crore (2023-24), while it was Rs 73.36 crore (2024-25) till July 15 of the current financial year.