KURNOOL: The prehistoric Kethavaram rock art, which dates back to the period between 10,000 and 6,000 BC, is yet to get Unesco recognition as a heritage and cultural site despite crores of rupees having been spent to develop the caves and related facilities.
The caves, located at Kethavaram in Orvakal mandal, were carved in the Mesolithic period with the rock art of deer, bulls, foxes, rabbits, turtles, butterflies, hyenas, crocodiles and humans. It was discovered by a team of researchers from the ancient history and archaeology wing of the University of Madras in 2018. The team identified around 40,000 such paintings in the area, making it the largest such area in South India.
Following the developments, officials of the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) and the tourism department planned to get a certification from Unesco for promoting tourism in the backward region.
The district administration had spent around Rs 1 crore for protecting the rare caves and planned to provide approach roads, drinking water facilities for sightseers and set up plantations for beautifying the area. With an airport also in place at Orvakal, the administration was anticipating a surge in visitors from across the country once Unesco includes it in the list of sites.
District Tourism Officer B. Venkateswarlu, who worked here earlier, said the plan is still in the pipeline of the ASI for two years now.
World Heritage Sites are designated by Unesco for having cultural, historical, scientific, or other forms of significance. Once a site is inscribed, a country may also receive financial assistance and expert advice from the World Heritage Committee to support activities for the preservation of such sites.
An official from the Archaeological Museum said their senior officials are following up on the process, attributing the delay to a red-tape stalemate.
“These rock paintings are exceedingly rare, and they bring special attraction to the district. A rock painting festival was also held in 2015 but since then, there has been no development in the process of obtaining the heritage site tag. Many sites across the globe have presence in the list of heritage sites. Unfortunately, these caves have been sheerly neglected,” said V. Ramakrishna of Orvakal.
