Intangible heritage key to preserving global diversity, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday described India’s heritage as a “living and flowing river” as the country hosted the 20th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage at the Red Fort in New Delhi.

Welcoming delegates and cultural custodians from around the world, the Prime Minister said it was a moment of “great pride” for India to convene the global gathering under the auspices of UNESCO.

“On behalf of 1.4 billion Indians, I warmly welcome all distinguished delegates and cultural custodians. Your presence enriches this occasion, you represent not only your nations, but also the living traditions, stories and wisdom that humanity has inherited through time,” he said.

Modi underlined that for India, heritage has never been confined to nostalgia or monuments, but has remained a dynamic and inclusive expression of community life. “Our civilisational journey has been shaped by the understanding that culture thrives in the everyday expressions of people — in festivals, rituals, arts and craftsmanship,” he noted.

He emphasised that intangible cultural heritage carries “the moral and emotional memory of societies,” shaping identity and continuity in an era of rapid change. “To save intangible heritage is to save the world’s cultural diversity,” he said, warning that modernisation, conflict and cultural disruption risk causing “precious traditions to fade silently.”

Praising UNESCO’s efforts since the 2003 Convention, the Prime Minister said the organisation had built “a shared global framework” for protecting intangible heritage and given visibility to communities whose traditions form “the backbone of human creativity”.

Highlighting India’s own contributions, Modi noted that several of the country’s cultural practices are inscribed on UNESCO’s Lists and that India remains proud of its “linguistic diversity, rich literature and countless traditions flourishing across villages, towns and communities”.

Reiterating the government’s vision of combining development with cultural preservation, the Prime Minister said India’s approach — “Vikas Bhi, Virasat Bhi” (development as well as heritage) — ensures that modernisation strengthens rather than erases cultural roots. Among national initiatives, he cited the creation of an Indian Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage to ensure that “no tradition, no practitioner and no community remains invisible or unsupported”.

Modi also outlined steps integrating modern science with ancient wisdom — from digitising fragile manuscripts to building immersive heritage experiences for youth and advancing research in classical languages. He urged the world to collaborate on a proposed Global Traditional Knowledge Repository to share and preserve humanity’s collective wisdom.

“Just as we owe future generations a greener planet, we owe them a richer cultural inheritance. We are the bridge between ancient heritage and modern aspiration,” he said, extending his best wishes to the Committee.