Jingkieng Jri seeks the UNESCO World Heritage Site
- Meghalaya’s Living Root Bridges of Meghalaya, which highlights the socio-cultural, social and botanical links among people and nature, is vying for tag of UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- A team of scientists from the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun visited the living root bridges at Shuthim village and Nohwet and assessed their health status.
Jingkieng Jri: the living bridge
- Jingkieng Jri are bridges, created by human beings.
- These aerial bridges are created by weaving and manipulating the roots of the Indian Rubber tree.
- Although the Living Root bridge takes around 10 to 15 years to take its shape, it can last up to 500 years.
- The Jingkieng Jri bridges are ever-evolving and have the potential to hold 50 or more people in one go.
- Found mostly over streams running through the forests, these are grown by trained Khasi and Jaintia tribes.
Heritage sites
- A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- Designated by UNESCO, the tag is given for having any cultural, historical, scientific, or other forms of significance.
- Agra Fort, Ajanta Caves, Ellora Caves, Taj Mahal are some of the many sites from India that have been inscribed on the List of World Heritage sites.
When is the World Heritage Site tag allotted?
- Usually announced once a year, the tag is given when the nominated sites have “outstanding universal value” and meets at least one of the following:
- Human creative genius
- Interchange of values
- Testimony to cultural tradition
- Significance in human history
- Traditional human settlement
- Heritage associated with events of universal significance
- Natural phenomena or beauty
- Major stages of earth’s history
- Significant ecological and biological processes
- Significant natural habitat for biodiversity