UP's Salkhan Fossil Park in Unesco tentative list for heritage sites
Lucknow: Unesco has included the Salkhan Fossil Park, in UP's Sonbhadra, in its tentative list of World Heritage Centre. The revised list, dated June 4, was published by Unesco on Tuesday and released by UP Tourism on Thursday.
The park has been recognised for its exceptional palaeobiological and geological significance.
"The rings of Salkhan are more than fossils. They are our connection with Earth's earliest days. The state made concerted efforts to make the world understand the importance of this prehistoric site nestled in UP's eastern end," said Prakhar Mishra, director (ecotourism), UP tourism department.
He said the Unesco tag, if it comes, would help UP "protect this treasure" and provide "economic opportunities to locals".
"The inclusion would bring global recognition to one of the Earth's most ancient life-bearing records. Salkhan Fossil Park would figure among the world's most significant natural heritage sites, securing its place as a geological and cultural cornerstone not just for India, but for humanity," Mishra added.
In its note on Salkhan, the Unesco said: "Salkhan Fossil Park is a remarkable geological site, nestled amidst the verdant embrace of the Kaimoor Wildlife Sanctuary.
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Spanning approximately 25 hectares, it sits within the Vindhyan mountain range, characterised by rugged terrain, steep escarpments, and a unique geological landscape. The park is home to a rich repository of fossils dating back approximately 1.4 billion years, making it one of the oldest and most well-preserved fossil sites in the world.
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It said the site's fossil assemblage, scattered across various formations, features an exceptional collection of stromatolites (formations created by communities of cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, which are indicators of ancient environmental conditions and microbial life) while noting that the 'fossils appear as ripple or ring-like/circular or oval stony formations scattered across limestone rock surfaces.
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The document also noted that Salkhan's fossils are meticulously preserved, offering invaluable insights into the earliest forms of life that populated our planet during the Proterozoic Eon — a critical time in geological history, essential for understanding the evolution of life forms on Earth.
"The park boasts a variety of stromatolitic morphologies, preserved within the Bhander limestone of the Vindhyan Supergroup, which features one of the most extensive and well-preserved collections of Proterozoic sedimentary rocks on Earth.
Salkhan Park is situated within the 'Semri Group', the oldest part of the Supergroup," read the description.
In Feb this year, six other sites from India were included in the Unesco World Heritage Centre tentative list — Kanger Valley National Park, Mudumal Megalithic Menhirs, Serial nomination for Ashokan Edict sites along the Mauryan Routes, Serial nomination of Chausath Yogini Temples, Serial nomination of Gupta Temples in North India, and Palace-Fortresses of the Bundelas.
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