Decision 44 COM 7B.24

Hill Forts of Rajasthan (India) (C 247rev)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/21/44.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decisions 39 COM 7B.65, 40 COM 7B.35, and 42 COM 7B.7, adopted at its 39th (Bonn, 2015), 40th (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016) and 42nd sessions (Manama, 2018) respectively,
3. Welcomes the finalisation of the Site Management Plan (SMP) for Jaisalmer Fort, and requests the State Party to report on progress concerning the resourcing and implementation of the planned actions, including the following high-priority matters:
   1. Effectiveness of the implementation of regulations and other measures to curtail unauthorised constructions and/or encroachments,
   2. Efforts to incorporate the SMP into the legal protection system and ongoing efforts to clarify the ownership of property,
   3. Development of the sub-plan for visitor management for Jaisalmer Fort, as a key part of the management system that will guide the development of appropriately designed and in-situ facilities and other initiatives to enhance the visitor experience, and requirement that Heritage Impact Assessments be conducted for all new facilities within the property boundaries or the buffer zone,
   4. Development of the sub-plans for risk preparedness and livelihood generation for the local population, to ensure that they can be operationalized and implemented, taking into account the need for capacity building,
   5. Development of the foreseen comprehensive Conservation Plan, together with detailed plans for maintenance of Jaisalmer Fort,
   6. Development of detailed and action-oriented monitoring of the condition of the World Heritage property, based on a clear articulation of its Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) and attributes,
   7. Adoption of the SMP by the Fort Apex Committee, including resourcing, priorities and intended timeframes for the implementation of the plan,
   8. Implementation of the proposed management framework, including the establishment of the Jaisalmer Fort Management Authority, and articulation of its capacities and priority activities;
4. Notes the information provided about the completion of infrastucture work for water supply, sewerage and electrical/telephone cables for Jaisalmer Fort, as well as on conservation and repair works undertaken at Jaisalmer Fort and Chittogarh Fort;
5. Also welcomes the advice from the State Party that no mining or blasting has occurred in the area surrounding the Chittogarh Fort since the inscription of the serial property, strongly encourages the State Party to ensure that such activities are not resumed, and also requests the State Party to submit, as a matter of priority, further information on progress towards the final resolution of the legal challenge that is being considered by the Supreme Court of India;
6. Encourages the State Party to ensure that all development projects within the property and buffer zones, including all major conservation and restoration projects, new visitor facilities and major adaptive reuse projects, are subject to Heritage Impact Assessments, in line with the 2011 ICOMOS Guidance, and that information about any project that could have an impact on the OUV of the property is submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies before any decision is made that would be difficult to reverse, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
7. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2022, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 46th session.