Orchha town of Madhya Pradesh added to the Tentative List of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites
29, May 2019
Prelims level :
Mains level :
CONTEXT:
- The architectural heritage of Orchha town in Madhya Pradesh added to the Tentative List of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.
- The architectural heritage of Orchha town depicts a unique style of the Bundela dynasty.
- The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had sent a proposal to UNESCO to include the architectural heritage of Orchha town in its list of World Heritage Sites on April 15, 2019.
- For a historical site to be a part of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites, it must be first included in the tentative list.
- Once included another proposal is sent to UNESCO, only then the site is included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage sites.
BACKGROUND:
- Situated on the banks of the Betwa river, Orchha is around 80 km from MP’s Tikamgarh district and 15 km from Jhansi district of UP.
- Orchha town is located in Niwari district of MP’s Bundelkhand region. ii. It was built by King Rudra Pratap Singh of Bundela dynasty in the 1 6th century.
- Bundela architecture has Mughal influence due to the closeness of both the dynasties. Veer Singh Dev, King of Bundela dynasty, was a close friend of Mughal emperor Jahangir.
- It is famous for its Chaturbhuj Temple, Orchha Fort complex and Raja Mahal. It is the only place in India where Lord Rama is worshipped as a king with a dedicated temple in his name called Sri Ram Raja Mandir.
UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites List:
- UNESCO inaugurated the list by adopting a treaty known as ‘The World Heritage Convention’ in 1972.
- It aims is to identify and protect the world’s natural and cultural heritages.
- The list of World Heritage Sites is maintained by the ‘World Heritage Programme’, administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
- At present, there are 38 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India (1 mixed, 7 Natural and 30 Cultural).