Guwahati: In what was widely welcomed, the Moidams—-600-year-old mound-burial system of the Ahom dynasty in eastern Assam was tagged as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) in New Delhi on Friday.This is the third property from Assam inscribed on the world heritage list but the first cultural site on the prestigious list from the northeastern region. The Moidam was among 28 sites proposed for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.It is significant that so far, the World Heritage Committee has inscribed 1,199 sites in 168 countries on the list. India has 44 of its sites on the list.”ICOMOS recommended that Moidams — the Mound-Burial System of the Ahom Dynasty, India, be inscribed on the World Heritage List on the basis of criteria (iii) and (iv).Based on the recommendation of ICOMOS, the first-time applicant Moidams was formally inscribed on the World Heritage List by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). These were first included in the Tentative List in April 2014.France-based ICOMOS, also an advisory body to UNESCO for cultural heritage, is an international non-governmental organisation that is composed of professionals, experts, representatives from local authorities, companies, and heritage organisations, and is dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of the architectural and landscape heritage throughout the world.Inclusion of Moidams in the World Heritage List was sought by the Indian government on the basis of Cultural Criteria (iii), (iv), and (v). The nominated property has an area of 95.02 hectares and a buffer zone of 754.511 hectares.Criterion (iii) bears a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization that is living or which has disappeared and criterion (iv) is for an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble, or landscape which illustrates significant stages in human history.The site is jointly managed by two separate entities —the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Assam Government’s Directorate of Archaeology (DoA).
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