Durga Puja gets 'Intangible Heritage' tag on the UNESCO list: What is this list all about?
On 15th December, UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific Cultural Organisation) declared the Indian festival Durga Puja as part of its ‘Intangible Heritage’ list. The announcement was made at the 16th meet of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural List, which is started from 13th December and is scheduled to last till the 18th.
This annual gathering is being presided over by Punchi Nilame Meegaswatte, Secretary General of the Sri Lankan National Commission for UNESCO. Participants include people from all across the world, including representatives of State Parties, NGOs, and various cultural institutions.
How did the Durga Puja make it to the ‘Intangible Heritage’ list?
In 2020, Durga Puja had been nominated to the Representative List of UNESCO. This nomination was proposed by the Sangeet Natak Akademi which had been appointed as the nomination committee from India for the Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Union Ministry of Culture back in the year 2011.
Following the nomination, this year in the month of September, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had further urged the UNESCO to consider Durga Puja as a global festival and to put it in the Intangible Heritage list.
What is the Intangible Cultural Heritage List?
Intangible Cultural Heritage list is a catalogue of social practices, representations, traditions and inherited or living expressions, knowledge or skills (performing arts, rituals, festive events and more), as well as the instruments, objects, artifacts, and cultural spaces that are considered by the UNESCO to be part of a place’s and in turn world’s cultural heritage.
According to the UNESCO, nominations followed by inscriptions on the Representative List are one among the many ways it tries to safeguard and promote intangible cultural heritage.
Why is this list significant?
Intangible Cultural Heritage list helps in maintaining cultural diversity worldwide, especially in the face of rising globalisation. It also promotes intercultural dialogue and motivates individuals from separate communities to come together and develop mutual respects for each other’s’ ways of life. It is also significant as it manifests the rich storehouse of knowledge, wisdom and traditions that are passed across generations. It also helps in socio-economic development of minority groups and encourages people in one state towards a unified existence. As per the UNESCO website, this intangible cultural heritage is all about “traditional, contemporary and living at the same time; i.e., inclusive, representative and community-base.”
Other Indian elements in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List
Till date 14 other cultural heritages from India have secured a place in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Few of them are: Kumbh Mela, Vedic Chants, Ramlila, Ramadan, Chhau dance and Sanskrit theatre.