UNESCO World Heritage List: See Full List of 42 Heritage Sites in India

After Santiniketan and Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala secured a place in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2023, the total number of heritage sites in India has grown to 42.

India's heritage properties include 34 in the cultural category, seven in the natural category and one mixed property. Here is a full list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India and the year in which it was inscribed.

Cultural - 34

• Agra Fort (1983)

• Ajanta Caves (1983)

• Archaeological Site of Nalanda Mahavihara at Nalanda, Bihar (2016)

• Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi (1989)

• Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park (2004)

• Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (formerly Victoria Terminus) (2004)

• Churches and Convents of Goa (1986)

• Dholavira: a Harappan City (2021)

• Elephanta Caves (1987)

• Ellora Caves (1983)

• Fatehpur Sikri (1986)

• Great Living Chola Temples (1987, 2004)

• Group of Monuments at Hampi (1986)

• Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram (1984)

• Group of Monuments at Pattadakal (1987)

• Hill Forts of Rajasthan (2013)

• Historic City of Ahmadabad (2017)

• Humayun's Tomb, Delhi (1993)

• Jaipur City, Rajasthan (2019)

• Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple, Telangana (2021)

• Khajuraho Group of Monuments (1986)

• Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya (2002)

• Mountain Railways of India (1999, 2005, 2008)

• Qutb Minar and its Monuments, Delhi (1993)

• Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen’s Stepwell) at Patan, Gujarat (2014)

• Red Fort Complex (2007)

• Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (2003)

• Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas (2023)

• Santiniketan (2023)

• Sun Temple, Konârak (1984)

• Taj Mahal (1983)

• The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement (2016)

• The Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (2010)

• Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai (2018)

Natural - 7

• Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area (2014)

• Kaziranga National Park (1985)

• Keoladeo National Park (1985)

• Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (1985)

• Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks (1988, 2005)

• Sundarbans National Park (1987)

• Western Ghats

Mixed - 1

• Khangchendzonga National Park

Presently, India has the sixth largest number of UNESCO sites in the world. The countries that have 42 or more world heritage sites are Italy, Spain, Germany, China and France.

Santiniketan

Santiniketan, the famed place in West Bengal where poet Rabindranath Tagore built Visva-Bharati over a century ago, earned the UNESCO tag in 2023. Santiniketan, a university town over 160 km from Kolkata, was originally an ashram built by Rabindranath Tagore's father Debendranath Tagore, where anyone, irrespective of caste and creed, could come and meditate on the one Supreme God, according to a description of the landmark on the official website of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre.

Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas (2023)

The 13th century temples of the Hoysala dynasty in Karnataka, have been inscribed on the World Heritage list of UNESCO. The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas has been nominated as a serial property comprising three temples in Karnataka, namely the Channakeshava temple in Belur, the Hoysaleshvara temple in Halebidu and the Keshava temple in Somanathapura, reflecting the creative brilliance of the 13th-century architects. These temples are a culmination of various temple building traditions prevalent in the northern, central and southern India such as the Nagara, Bhumija and Dravida styles.