India, July 30 -- India's ancient Buddhist site of Sarnath, Alamut Castle and Related Fortifications in Iran, and Jordan's Aqaba Marine Reserve are among the 25 sites which have been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The decisions were taken during the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee, held from July 19-29 in South Korea's Busan. India's ancient Buddhist site of Sarnath in Uttar Pradesh was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on July 25. "This session also marks the first-ever inscriptions on the UNESCO World Heritage List for three African countries - Comoros, Sao Tome and Principe and South Sudan - showcasing the Organisation's commitment to a more balanced and representative List," UNESCO said in a statement.

The committee also added six sites to the List of World Heritage in Danger, recognising both the sites' outstanding value and the need to protect them, it said. "The World Heritage Committee wrapped up its 48th session in Busan, Republic of Korea, with the addition of 25 new sites to UNESCO's World Heritage List. All inscriptions during the session were adopted by consensus, reflecting the cooperative spirit that underpins the 1972 World Heritage Convention," it said. Other inscriptions include the US' Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge -- the property, located in southeastern Georgia and northeastern Florida. The site protects the Okefenokee Swamp, the largest lowland freshwater peatland in the subtropical zone worldwide and one of the largest and most intact ecosystems within the North American Coastal Plain global biodiversity hotspot. Japan's ancient capitals of Asuka and Fujiwara, Uzbekistan's Tashkent Modernist Architecture, and The Rocas of Sao Tome and Principe: Colonial Agricultural System and Forced Migration, and the wider area of Mount Olympus in Greece are also now on the list. With these new inscriptions, the UNESCO World Heritage List now comprises 1,273 sites across 173 countries. These newly inscribed properties now benefit from the highest level of international recognition and protection, UNESCO said in its statement on July 28.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.