Bihu: an intangible heritage of Assam

Heritages by UNESCO:

=> “Bohag Bihu” of Assam may soon be included in the Intangible Cultural Heritage list of UNESCO.

How heritages are decided by UNESCO?

=> World Heritages are decided by World Heritage Committees of UNESCO.

=> World Heritages are decided on the basis of recommendations of 3 organizations.

=> These organizations are-

1. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

2. International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM)

3. International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)

What is the news?

=> The North East Zone of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) will reach out to the masses for data collection and preparation of a dossier on Bihu and Borgeet to strengthen the claim for their place on the list of intangible cultural heritage under the UNESCO.

=> After Durga Puja of Kolkata that has just been accorded heritage status by the UNESCO on its representative list of cultural heritage, experts from Assam are trying for the same status to Bihu, the major festival of Assam, and Borgeet, the devotional songs composed by Srimanta Sankaradeva and Madhavdeva in the 15th – 16th centuries.