Carved sandstone spires and figure sculpture on a temple at Khajuraho.
A carved stone chariot wheel on the plinth of the Sun Temple at Konark.
The Taj Mahal in white marble, reflected in its watercourse at dawn.
Temple ruins among granite boulders in the landscape at Hampi.
Rock-cut monuments on the shore at Mahabalipuram.
Carved sandstone spires and figure sculpture on a temple at Khajuraho.
A carved stone chariot wheel on the plinth of the Sun Temple at Konark.
The Taj Mahal in white marble, reflected in its watercourse at dawn.
Temple ruins among granite boulders in the landscape at Hampi.
Rock-cut monuments on the shore at Mahabalipuram.

Khangchendzonga National Park

Sikkim

Inscribed
2016
Period
National park from 1977
Property
Mixed
The snow peaks of Khangchendzonga above forested ridges in Sikkim.
G Devadarshan Sharma · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons

The park covers a large part of northern and western Sikkim, centred on Khangchendzonga, the third-highest mountain in the world. It was inscribed under both natural and cultural criteria — the only Indian property in that category.

History

The park was established in 1977 and expanded subsequently. Khangchendzonga is regarded as sacred in Sikkimese Buddhist and Lepcha tradition, understood as a protective deity, and this is reflected in local practice: Sikkim's summit is by convention left untrodden, and climbers stop short of the true top. The property was inscribed in 2016.

Landscape and wildlife

Altitude runs from about 1,200 metres to 8,586 at the summit, giving subtropical forest, temperate broadleaf and conifer forest, alpine meadow and extensive glaciers within one property. The Zemu glacier is among the largest in the eastern Himalaya. Wildlife includes snow leopard, Himalayan black bear, red panda, blue sheep and Himalayan tahr.

Significance

Khangchendzonga is inscribed for the inseparability of its natural and cultural values: the mountain is both an exceptional ecological system and a sacred landscape whose meanings are still actively held. Indigenous belief here functions as a form of protection rather than as a heritage exhibit.

UNESCO recognition

Inscribed in 2016 under criteria (iii), (vi), (vii) and (x) — the only mixed property in India, recognised for both cultural association and natural significance.

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