Here is the updated list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. Under General Knowledge section it is a very important topic for various competitive exams like SSC CGL, IBPS PO, RBI Grade B, CDS, UPSC, IBPS Clerk. At present India has 40 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Recently 2 more sites of India declared as a world heritage site. This was declared by UNESCO World Heritage Committees in there 44th session, recently held in China.
Table of Contents
About World Heritage Site in India
• The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are the important places of cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972.
• India accepted the convention on World Heritage Sites on 14 November 1977.
• The first 4 sites of India inscripted in World Heritage Sites were.
1. Ajanta Caves
2. Ellora Caves
3. Agra Fort
4. Taj Mahal
• All the 4 sites were inscribed in the 1983 session of the World Heritage Committee.
• As of July 2021, two new sites of India inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list.
• They are Dholavira which is located in Gujarat and Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple , which is located in Telangana.
• At present Maharashtra has the highest number of UNESCO World Heritage sites. (Total 5)
• The Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai is the latest UNESCO World Heritage site of Maharashtra.
• Presently, there are 40 World Heritage Sites located in India.
• Out of these, 32 are cultural, 7 are natural, and 1 is mixed (meeting both cultural and natural criteria) sites.
• India has the sixth largest number of sites in the world.
• Total 1154 sites are inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage list all over the world.
• Top 3 Country with the highest number of UNESCO World Heritage site.
1. Italy – 58 UNESCO World Heritage sites
2. China – 56 UNESCO World Heritage sites
3. Germany – 51 UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Full list of World Heritage Site in India
Natural World Heritage Sites in India
| Sl. No | Sites Name | State | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaziranga National Park | Assam | 1985 |
| 2 | Keoladeo National Park | Rajasthan | 1985 |
| 3 | Manas Wildlife Sanctuary | Assam | 1985 |
| 4 | Sundarbans National Park | West Bengal | 1987 |
| 5 | Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks |
Uttarakhand | 1988 |
| 6 | Western Ghats | Maharashtra Karnataka Kerala Tamil Nadu |
2012 |
| 7 | Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area |
Himachal Pradesh | 2014 |
Mixed World Heritage Site in India
| Sl. No | Sites Name | State | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khangchendzonga National Park | Sikkim | 2016 |
Cultural World Heritage Sites in India
| Sl. No | Sites Name | State | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agra Fort | Uttar Pradesh | 1983 |
| 2 | Ajanta Caves | Maharashtra | 1983 |
| 3 | Ellora Caves | Maharashtra | 1983 |
| 4 | Taj Mahal | Uttar Pradesh | 1983 |
| 5 | Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram | Tamil Nadu | 1984 |
| 6 | Sun Temple, Konârak | Odisha | 1984 |
| 7 | Churches and Convents of Goa | Goa | 1986 |
| 8 | Fatehpur Sikri | Uttar Pradesh | 1986 |
| 9 | Group of Monuments at Hampi | Karnataka | 1986 |
| 10 | Khajuraho Group of Monuments |
Madhya Pradesh | 1986 |
| 11 | Elephanta Caves | Maharashtra | 1987 |
| 12 | Great Living Chola Temples |
Tamil Nadu | 1987 |
| 13 | Group of Monuments at Pattadakal |
Karnataka | 1987 |
| 14 | Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi |
Madhya Pradesh | 1989 |
| 15 | Humayun’s Tomb | Delhi | 1993 |
| 16 | Qutb Minar and its Monuments |
Delhi | 1993 |
| 17 | Mountain Railways of India |
West Bengal (Darjeeling) Himachal Pradesh (Kalka Shimla) Tamil Nadu (Nilgiri) |
1999 |
| 18 | Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya | Bihar | 2002 |
| 19 | Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka |
Madhya Pradesh | 2003 |
| 20 | Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park |
Gujarat | 2004 |
| 21 | Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) |
Maharashtra | 2004 |
| 22 | Red Fort Complex | Delhi | 2007 |
| 23 | The Jantar Mantar | Jaipur, Rajasthan | 2010 |
| 24 | Hill Forts of Rajasthan |
Rajasthan | 2013 |
| 25 | Rani ki vav (The Queen’s Stepwell) |
Patan, Gujarat | 2014 |
| 26 | Archaeological Site of Nalanda Mahavihara at Nalanda, Bihar |
Bihar | 2016 |
| 27 | The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier |
Chandigarh | 2016 |
| 28 | Historic City of Ahmadabad | Ahmedabad, Gujarat | 2017 |
| 29 | The Victorian and Art Deco of Mumbai |
Maharashtra | 2018 |
| 30 | Jaipur City | Rajasthan | 2019 |
| 31 | Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple |
Telangana | 2021 |
| 32 | Dholavira: A Harappan City |
Gujarat | 2021 |
Details about all the World Heritage sites
♦ Kaziranga National Park
☛ Kaziranga National Park, famous for one-horned rhinoceroses
☛ It was declared as a National Park in 1974.
☛ It has been declared a tiger reserve since 2007.
☛ It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985
♦ Keoladeo National Park
☛ Keoladeo National Park formerly known as the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary.
☛ Keoladeo Ghana National Park is a man-made and man-managed wetland and one of the national parks of India.
♦ Manas National Park
☛ Manas National Park, located in the states of Assam, India.
• Major year of declaration
☛ 1905 : Proposed Reserve Forest.
☛ 1907 : Manas Reserve Forest
☛ 1928 : Game Sanctuary.
☛ 1950 : Manas Wildlife Sanctuary
☛ 1973 : Declared as Tiger Reserve under Project Tiger
☛ 1985 : Declared as World Heritage Site (Natural) by UNESCO
☛ 1989 : Declared as Biosphere Reserve under Man & Biosphere Programme of UNESCO
☛ 1990 : Declared as National Park.
☛ 2003: Declared as Chirang – Ripu Elephant Reserve under Project Elephant.
• Flora
☛ The Manas National Park has more than 650 species of Angiosperms alone.
☛ Other commonly seen trees are the Simul, Oxi, Sissoo, Khaie, Gamari, etc.
• Fauna
☛ Manas is very rich in the population of Royal Bengal Tigers.
☛ It has largest population of the endangered Bengal Florican bird in the world.
☛ Other bird species are Great Hornbill , Black-tailed Crake, Red-headed Trogo, Swamp Francolin and Bristled Grassbirds.
♦ Sundarbans National Park
☛ The area of Sundarbans National Park spread over the two districts of West Bengal namely North 24 parganas and South 24 parganas.
☛ Maximum parts of Sundarbans National Park lies in South 24 parganas.
• Flora and Fauna
☛ The Sundarbans delta is densely covered by mangrove forests.
☛ The name Sundarbans is derived from the Sundari ( Heritiera fomes ) tree found here.
☛ Sundarbans National Park famous for Royal Bengal tiger.
☛ It is also home to a variety of bird, reptile and invertebrate species, including the salt-water crocodile.
• Important Date
☛ The Sundarban National Park was declared as the core area of Sundarban Tiger Reserve in 1973.
☛ Declaredand as a wildlife sanctuary in 1977.
☛ On 4 May 1984 it was declared a national park.
☛ It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 1987
☛ It has been designated as a Ramsar site since 2019.
☛ It is considered as a World Network of Biosphere Reserve (Man and Biosphere Reserve) from 1989.
♦ Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks
• Location
☛ The Nanda Devi National Park and Valley of Flowers National Parks is an UNESCO World Heritage Site in Uttarakhand, India.
• History
☛ The Nanda Devi was declared as Nanda Devi Sanctuary in 1939.
☛ It became a world heritage site in the year 1988.
☛ In 1988 the site was inscribed as Nanda Devi National Park.
♦ Western Ghats
• Location
☛ The Western Ghats is a mountain range parallel to the western coast of the Indian peninsula.
• About Western Ghats
☛ It covers an area of 160,000 km^2 in a stretch of 1,600 km.
☛ The Western Ghats also known as Sahyadri.
☛ It spread over the states of Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra,Gujarat , Kerala,and Tamil Nadu.
☛ It is sometimes called the Great Escarpment of India.
☛ It contains a very large proportion of the country’s flora and fauna.
☛ According to UNESCO, the Western Ghats are older than the Himalayas.
☛ They influence Indian monsoon weather patterns by intercepting the rain-laden monsoon winds that sweep in from the south-west during late summer.
☛ The Western Ghats block southwest monsoon winds from reaching the Deccan Plateau.
☛ The average elevation is around 1,200 m (3,900 ft).
☛ The area is one of the world’s ten “hottest biodiversity hotspots.”
Related topics
Wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks of West Bengal
List of National Park in India
