In a major step, the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has prepared a draft document for Puducherry to be nominated to the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Cities.
The State Level Heritage Conservation Committee had proposed to make an application to Unesco, and the draft document has been prepared as per the guidelines of Unesco.1
Earlier, the first list of 114 heritage buildings in the Boulevard were notified as protected structures: these include the landmark Governor’s House, the Old Court building where the President of India Droupadi Murmu stayed during her visit to Puducherry, and the Police Headquarters.
Mr. Panda pointed out that Puducherry must have an “outstanding universal value” and meet at least one of the 10 criteria to be included in the tentative list.
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- 1. According to Ashok Panda, co-convenor of the Puducherry chapter of INTACH, “Puducherry has already taken a leap to achieve the status by reaching three milestones in the initiative. The government has notified a regulation to protect heritage sites and heritage precincts. It has also constituted the State Level Heritage Conservation Committee and has proposed the second list of 118 private and 13 religious buildings to be notified as listed heritage buildings. This second list of buildings has been put in the public domain till August 31, 2023 for suggestions from the public by the Puducherry Planning Authority.”