India, July 9 -- A Unesco advisory body recommending deferment of India's bid to put 12 forts associated with Maratha king Shivaji on the World Heritage List should serve as a wake-up call for the country's heritage governance authorities. The International Council on Monuments and Sites (Icomos), which vets applications for inclusion in the Unesco list, said India's nomination had "management, documentation and impact assessment" deficits. The current application, therefore, could not establish Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the forts, a key criterion for inclusion in the World Heritage List.

This is a sharp indictment of India's heritage conservation and points to a larger capacity deficit regarding documentation and preservation...