• UNESCO released a list of 50 exclusive and iconic heritage textile crafts of the country.
• According to UNESCO, one of the major challenges to the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in the South Asia is lack of proper inventory and documentation.
• Handmade for the 21^st Century: Safeguarding Traditional Indian Textile lists the histories and legends behind the textiles, describes the complicated and secret processes behind their making, mentions the causes for their dwindling popularity, and provides strategies for their preservation.
• The publication, which aims to bridge this gap, brings together years of research on the 50 selected textiles.

Some of the iconic handcrafted textiles documented from are:

• Toda embroidery and Sungadi from Tamil Nadu, Himroo weaves from Hyderabad and Bandha tie and dye weaving from Sambalpur in Odisha.
• Khes from Panipat, Chamba rumals from Himachal Pradesh, Thigma or wool tie and dye from Ladakh and Awadh Jamdani from Varanasi.
• Ilkal and Lambadi or Banjara embroidery from Karnataka, Sikalnayakanpet Kalamkari from Thanjavur have been included.
• Kunbi weaves from Goa, Mashru weaves and Patola from Gujarat, Himroo from Maharashtra and Garad-Koirial from West Bengal.

About UNESCO and Intangible Cultural Heritage:

• UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It seeks to build peace through international cooperation in Education, the Sciences and Culture. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the Agenda 2030.
• Following the adoption of a Convention in 2003, UNESCO establishes a Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide.
• This list is approved by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
• Intangible Cultural Heritage is directly linked to livelihoods, and constitutes cultural capital that can be a powerful driver for development.
• UNESCO works to safeguard cultural heritage and promote cultural diversity as a force for dialogue and development.

UPSC Prelims Model Question

Q. “Handmade for the 21st Century: Safeguarding Traditional Indian Textile” lists, recently seen in news, is associated with which of the following?

(a) Ministry of Culture

(b) Ministry of Tourism

(c) UNESCO

(d) Indian National Trust for Art and Culture Heritage

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