Meghalaya’s famous ‘Living Root Bridges’ have made their way into the tentative list of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
The Living Root Bridges are found in over 70 villages in Meghalaya and these highlights the socio-cultural, social and botanical links between people and nature.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma in a post on Twitter said, “Delighted to share that ‘Jingkieng Jri: Living Root Bridge Cultural Landscapes of Meghalaya’ has been included in the @UNESCO World Heritage Site tentative list. “I congratulate all community members and stakeholders in this ongoing journey.”
Villagers grow the living root bridges by training the ‘ficus elastica’ tree on both sides of water bodies over a period of about 10 to 15 years where the roots form the bridge.
At present, there are about 100 known living root bridges spread across 72 villages in the state.
