DOHA: UNESCO's World Heritage Committee's (WHC) 38th session, under HE the Chair Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani, has accepted the Government of Nepal's progress report on the state of its four inscribed properties, including Lumbini, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha in 623 BC.
Speaking to Qatar News Agency (QNA) today, Nepal delegation chief and Department of Archaeology Director General Bhesh Narayan Dahal said, "The committee has accepted the report on all listed and satisfied with Lumbini’s restoration work done as per the required norms."
UNESCO inscribed Lumbini in the World Heritage List in 1997 because of its outstanding universal value as it is one of the most holy places for one of the world’s great religions and archaeological remains provide evidence about the nature of Buddhist pilgrimage from a very early period.
Nepal's Ministry of Culture, along with other departments carried restoration and development work and the heritage committee was satisfied with the report, Dahal said who led a three-member Nepal panel on Observer status to the 38th session that concluded here today.
The United Nations Development Programme has contributed around one million dollars for preparation of a Master Plan for the development of Lumbini.
The plan focused to restore an area around 7.7 square kms known as the Lumbini Garden, and the Ashoka Pillar.
UNESCO has inscribed two cultural and two natural properties from Nepal on its world heritage list.
Lumbini and Kathmandu Valley are the two cultural properties. The Valley is characterized by seven groups of monuments and buildings. These display a range of historic and artistic achievements.
The seven monuments include the Durbar Squares of Hanuman Dhoka (Kathmandu), Patan and Bhaktapur, the Buddhist stupas of Swayambhu and Bauddhanath and the Hindu temples of Pashupati and Changu Narayan.
Nepal's natural properties on world heritage list are Mount Everest National Park and the Royal Chitwan National Park. This park is home to around 400 greater one-horned rhinoceros. An additional 15 sites from Nepal are on WHC's Tentative List.
The WHC's 38th session which concluded today saw the addition of 26 new inscriptions comprising 21 cultural properties, four natural one mixed and four received extensions.
This advances the total world heritage inscriptions to 1007 at the end of the Doha session. (QNA)
