UN cultural agency UNESCO has declared the 600-year-old walled city of Ahmedabad as a world heritage city.
Ahmedabad is the first Indian city to make it to the list. The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO met in Poland on Saturday night where the decision was made.
“Thrilled to announce! Ahmedabad has just been declared India’s first World Heritage city by Unesco,” tweeted Ruchira Kamboj, India’s permanent representative to Unesco.
"The journey began in 2010 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi proffered the dossier of Ahmedabad to Unesco," Kamboj said in her speech after Ahmedabad’s inscription.
The Walled City of Ahmedabad joins Paris, Vienna, Cairo, Brussels, Rome and Edinburgh.
Ahmedabad’s journey towards attaining a world heritage tag began in 1984 when the first study for conserving heritage structures was instituted by Ford Foundation.
In March 2011, Ahmedabad made it to Unesco’s tentative list of world heritage sites.
In January 2016, it was chosen over Delhi and Mumbai as India’s entry for the title.
According to Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Mukesh Kumar, there are and over two dozen ASI (Archaeological Survey of India) protected monuments and sites in the walled city.
The announcement was hailed and celebrated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.
