The Gist of Press Information Bureau: November 2016
- Khangchendzonga National Park Inscribed as India's First 'Mixed' Site on World Heritage List ()
- SWAYAM Prabha-Educational Contents through DTH ()
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- India as 35th member of Missile Technology Control Regime ()
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Khangchendzonga National Park Inscribed as India's First 'Mixed' Site on World Heritage List
Khangchendzonga National Park (KNP), Sikkim has been inscribed as India's first "Mixed World Heritage Site" on UNESCO World Heritage List, by fulfilling the nomination criteria under both natural and cultural heritage. The 40th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, at a meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, granted approval for the inscription of India's on the coveted UNESCO World Heritage List. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), the two Advisory Bodies of UNESCO had earlier given their positive recommendations to the 21 member UNESCO World Heritage Committee, to inscribe Khangchendzonga National Park (KNP), Sikkim as a 'Mixed World Heritage Site'.
The KNP exhibits one of the widest altitudinal ranges of any protected area worldwide. The Park has an extraordinary vertical sweep of over 7 kilometres (1,220m to 8,586m) within an area of only 178,400 ha and comprises a unique diversity of lowlands, steep-sided valleys and spectacular snow-clad mountains including the world's third highest peak, Mt. Khangchendzonga. Numerous lakes and glaciers, including the 26 km long Zemu Glacier, dot the barren high altitudes. The KNP lies within the Himalaya global biodiversity hotspot and displays an unsurpassed range of sub-tropical to alpine ecosystems. The Himalayas are narrowest here, resulting in extremely steep terrain, which magnifies the distinction between the various eco-zones. The KNP is located within a mountain range of global biodiversity conservation significance and covers 25% of the State of Sikkim, acknowledged as one of India's most significant biodiversity concentrations. The KNP is home to a significant number of endemic, rare and threatened plant and animal species and has the highest number of plant and mammal species recorded in the Central/High Asian Mountains, except compared to the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas, in China; and also has a high number of bird species.