Santiniketan included in UNESCO World Heritage list

Kolkata: Santiniketan in Birbhum was included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Reacting to this, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote on X: “Glad and proud that our Santiniketan, the town of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, is now finally included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Biswa Bangla’s pride, Santiniketan was nurtured by the poet and has been supported by people of Bengal over the generations. We from the Government of West Bengal have significantly added to its infrastructure in last 12 years and the world now recognizes the glory of the heritage place. Kudos to all who love Bengal, Tagore, and his messages of fraternity. Jai Bangla, Pranam to Gurudev.”

TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee wrote on X: “An immensely proud moment for all citizens of our great nation and Bengalis around the world. May Bengal forever remain a shining beacon of hope, embracing the teachings and ideals of Rabindranath Tagore.”

“#Santiniketan, West Bengal now inscribed on the #WorldHeritage List!! Established in rural West Bengal in 1901, Santiniketan was founded by Rabindranath Tagore, a renowned poet and philosopher. It is now India’s 41st #WorldHeritageSite,” UNESCO New Delhi wrote on X. The landmark site was recommended to be included in the UNESCO World Heritage List by the International Council on Monuments

and Sites (ICOMOS) a few months ago. “Proud moment for Bengal! Santiniketan, the cherished home of Kobiguru Rabindranath Tagore, has earned its place in @UNESCO’s World Heritage List. It proudly stands as a testament to the profound cultural and intellectual contributions of the Nobel Laureate. Let us continue to cherish and protect this treasure for generations to come,” All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) posted on X.

According to the UNESCO website: “Santiniketan was a residential school and centre for art based on ancient Indian traditions and a vision of the unity of humanity transcending religious and cultural boundaries.”

A ‘world university’ was established at Santiniketan in 1921, recognising 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 approaches toward a pan-Asian modernity, drawing on ancient, medieval and folk traditions from across the region.