^st World Heritage site and India stands 6^th on the World Heritage List.  Also, the Sacred Ensembles of Hoysalas has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. This is the 42nd UNESCO World Heritage Site of India. The three magnificent temples – Hoysalesvara Temple, Helebidu, Channakeshava Temple, Belur, and Keshava Temple, Somenathpur in Karnataka reflect the marvelous architectural and artistic creativity.

Union Culture Minister stated that it is the vision and direction of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi that India is rejuvenating and reviving its rich cultural heritage as well as showcasing it to the World.

The beautiful 13^th century CE temples of the Hoysala Dynasty in Karnataka, have been inscribed on the World Heritage list of UNESCO, making India’s total sites on the World Heritage list as 42. This is an occasion for immense joy and celebration for entire Indian Nation.

India’s nomination of The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas has been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list in the ongoing extended 45th World Heritage Committee Meeting being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. India submitted the nomination dossier for The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas to the World Heritage Centre in January, 2022. The site has been on the UNESCO’s tentative list since 2014.

The decision to adopt The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas, as World Heritage Property was taken by the 21 nation World Heritage Committee comprising the following states parties:

Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Egypt, Ethiopia, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Mali, Mexico, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, and Zambia

India is currently the member of the WH Committee for its fourth term (2021-25). The matter came up for discussion on 18^th September, 2023 at 3:45 pm and was adopted without discussion. All Committee members congratulated India for the achievement.

With this successful nomination, India has 42 world heritage properties overall, which        includes 34 cultural, 7 natural and 1 mixed property. Presently, India has the sixth largest number of sites in the World. The countries that have 42 or more World Heritage sites and apart from India, this now contains Italy, Spain, Germany, China and France. It is further added that India has added 12 new world Heritage sites since 2014, and this is testimony to the Prime Minister’s steadfast commitment in promoting Indian culture, heritage and the Indian way of life.

The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas, has been nominated as a serial property comprising three temples in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, namely the Channakeshava temple in Belur, the Hoysaleshvara temple in Halebidu and the Keshava temple in Somanathapura, reflects the creative brilliance of the 13^th century architects.

These temples are a culmination of various temple building traditions prevalent in the Northern, Central and Southern India such as the Nagara, Bhumija and Dravida styles. Hence the inscription of these temples in the World Heritage List is a combined homage to the great temple building tradition of India.

The Temples are richly experiential, with their exquisite architecture, sculptures and intricate carvings, reflecting the genius of the sculptors in translating religious beliefs, stories and abstract ideas into the medium of stone.

The practice of having sculptural panels narrating stories from the Hindu Epics and puranas along the walls of the temple deepened the religious experience of circumambulation path was first introduced by the Hoysalas.

The coming together of the creative genius, architectural eclecticism and symbolism into this outstanding sacred architecture makes these Hoysalas temples, a true work of art and their inscription is truly an honour for India and the entire World Heritage Community.

India submitted the nomination dossier for Santiniketan to the World Heritage Centre in January, 2021. The site was on the UNESCO’s tentative list since 2010. Santiniketan is situated in a rural location in West Bengal, and is associated with the work and philosophies of Rabindranath Tagore, a world-famous poet, artist, musician and philosopher, and a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature (1913). The site was established as an ashram and given its name in 1863 by Tagore’s father, Debendranath Tagore. The property was proposed under the criteria of (iv) and (vi).

In 1901, Rabindranath Tagore began its transformation to a residential school and centre for art, based on the ancient Indian tradition of gurukul. His vision was oriented at the unity of humanity, or “Visva Bharati”. Distinct from the prevailing British colonial architectural orientations of the early 20th century and of European modernism, Santiniketan represents orientations toward a Pan-Asian modernity, drawing on ancient, medieval and folk traditions from across the region.