Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy on Tuesday urged the citizens to make efforts to preserve the heritage of the country for future generations and asserted that India’s cultural traditions have been given prominence in the last nine years.
Reddy made the remarks on the World Heritage Day or International Day for Monuments and Sites (IDMS) which is being celebrated on Tuesday with the theme ‘Heritage Changes’.
“The theme this year offers the opportunity to respond to questions regarding learning about traditional ways of knowing and knowledge systems in relation to climate action, and how to use a cultural heritage focus to support equitable protection of vulnerable communities through climate action, while responding to the UN Decade of Action,” the Culture Ministry said in a statement.
Reddy said on this World Heritage Day, “as the world celebrates its efforts to salvage the rich cultural heritage inherited from ancestors, India is also proud of its efforts on that front”.
“The government of India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji is working on the theme of ‘Vikas Bhi, Virasat Bhi’, where development work and growth go hand in hand with preserving our cultural spaces.
“Prime Minister Modi has led from the front in ensuring that the country’s rich civilisational history gets its due recognition globally,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.
The Modi government is “deeply aware of the nation’s rich culture and has taken much-needed steps for preserving our heritage”, the minister said.
From added impetus on preservation of monuments to establishing world-class institutes that train our citizens on conservation strategies, the government has done a slew of initiatives to maintain our cultural assets, he said.
The government has also “built many monuments of national importance to give our young generation a richer sense of Indian history”, he added.
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On the occasion, the union minister also tweeted and urged the citizens to “preserve our heritage for future generations”.
“The Stunning Wonders of #MyIncredibleIndia On #WorldHeritageDay, let’s celebrate India’s magnificent cultural & historical tapestry. With numerous World Heritage Sites, our nation’s incredible past shines through each one. Let’s preserve our heritage for future generations,” he tweeted and shared a collage of images of various heritage sites of India.
In 1982, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) announced that April 18 will be observed as the World Heritage Day. This was approved by the General Assembly of UNESCO in 1983 to enhance awareness about the importance of cultural heritage and monuments, and conserving them, the statement said.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has a total of 1,154 monuments designated as world heritage sites from all over the world.
Apart from India, only Italy, Spain, Germany, China and France have 40 or more world heritage sites, it said.
Out of 40 UNESCO world heritage inscriptions, “10 have been done in the last nine years” with a wide range of diversity from across India. The UNESCO Tentative List (entries from India) has increased from “15 in 2014 to 52 in 2022”. This provides huge potential to India to attract a large number of foreign travellers to the country, the statement said.
Meanwhile, Archaeological Survey of India Circles spread across the country celebrated the day by hosting photo exhibitions, cleanliness drive, lectures and drawing competitions, among other events, a senior ASI official said.
