ShantiNiketan- The World Heritage

Blog Credit: Trupti Thakur

Image Courtesy: Google

ShantiNiketan- The World Heritage Site

 

Santiniketan, a popular town in West Bengal, is famed as the place where Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore established the Visva-Bharati University over a century ago. It has now been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, making it great news for the country.

The organization took to social media to post this information, wherein it stated, “New inscription on the @UNESCO #WorldHeritage List: Santiniketan, #India. Congratulations!”

India has been trying for a long time to get a UNESCO tag for this cultural site in Birbhum district.

As per the latest reports, the decision to include Santiniketan in the list was taken at the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee, which is currently underway in Saudi Arabia.

Santiniketan was established in the year 1901, by poet and philosopher Tagore, lovingly known as Gurudev. It served as a residential school and center for art based on ancient Indian traditions and a vision of the unity of humanity transcending religious and cultural boundaries.

In 1921, a ‘world university’ was established at Santiniketan to recognize the unity of humanity or Visva Bharati.

The name of the beautiful and culturally rich town literally means the ‘abode of peace’. Named after a local dacoit Bhuban, it was earlier called ‘Bhubandanga’.

Bordering Bolpur city in the Birbhum district of West Bengal, it was established by Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, father of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. Later, Rabindranath Tagore envisioned it as a university town and established a school. It was called Brahmachary Ashram, and was later expanded into the Visva-Bharati University.

The recommendation to add the site to the UNESCO World Heritage list was was announced by Union Minister G Kishan Reddy in May. He said in a tweet, “Great news for India on the jayanti of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. Santiniketan in West Bengal has been recommended for inscription to the World Heritage List by ICOMOS, the advisory body to UNESCO World Heritage Centre.”

International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is a France-based international body dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of global architecture and heritage.

Apart from Santiniketan, West Bengal also has another gem in UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity – the Durga Puja in.

In contrast to the dominant architectural styles of British colonialism in the early 20th century and European modernism, Santiniketan embodies a vision of pan-Asian modernity that incorporates elements from ancient, medieval, and folk traditions spanning the entire Asian region.

Prime Minister Modi called the inclusion of West Bengal’s Santiniketan in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list as a proud moment for all Indians.

Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee added that she is glad and proud that Santiniketan, the town of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, is now finally included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List. She further added that Biswa Bangla’s pride, Santiniketan was nurtured by the poet and has been supported by people of Bengal over the generations.

 

 

Blog By: Trupti Thakur