<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> Kalka - Shimla Railway, Himachal Pradesh (2008) India </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 27 </Td> <Td> Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks </Td> <Td> <P> </P> </Td> <Td> Chamoli District, Uttarakhand, India </Td> <Td> 015 1939 and 1982 </Td> <Td> 335bis! 335bis; 1988, 2005; (vii), (x) </Td> <Td> Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks are nestled high in West Himalaya . Valley of Flowers National Park is renowned for its meadows of endemic alpine flowers and outstanding natural beauty . It is located in the Garhwal Himalaya of Chamoli District of Uttarakhand . This richly diverse area is also home to rare and endangered animals, including the Asiatic black bear, snow leopard, brown bear and blue sheep . The gentle landscape of the Valley of Flowers National Park complements the rugged mountain wilderness of Nanda Devi National Park . Together, they encompass a unique transition zone between the mountain ranges of the Zanskar and Great Himalaya . The park stretches over an expanse of 87.5 km (33.8 sq mi). It was established as a national park on 6 November 1982 . However, it was initially established as a game sanctuary on 7 January 1939 . It was inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1988 with extension in 2005 under category (vii) and (x). Together, they comprise the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, which is on the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves since 2004 . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 28 </Td> <Td> Sundarbans National Park </Td> <Td> <P> </P> <P> </P> </Td> <Td> West Bengal (India) </Td> <Td> 015 1939 and 1982 </Td> <Td> 452! 452; 1987; (ix) and (x) </Td> <Td> The Sundarbans National Park, the largest estuarine mangrove forest in the world is a national park, tiger reserve, UNESCO World Heritage Site and a biosphere reserve located in the Sundarbans Ganges river delta bordering the Bay of Bengal, in West Bengal . It is also on the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves . The Sundarbans as a whole encompasses 10,000 km (3,900 sq mi) of land and water, about 5,980 km (2,310 sq mi) in India and the balance is in Bangladesh . It is integral to the world's largest delta of 80,000 km formed from sediments deposited by the three great rivers, the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna, which confluence in the Bengal Basin . The entire basin is traversed by a complex network of interconnecting waterways . Though, the history of protection in the area of Indian part of the Sundarbans dates back to 1878, it was declared as the core area of Sundarbans Tiger Reserve in 1973 and a wildlife sanctuary in 1977 of 133,000 - hectare core area within the 258,500 hectares (639,000 acres) Sundarbans Tiger Reserve . On May 4, 1984 it was declared a National Park . It was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1987 as a natural property under category (ix) and (x). This region is densely covered by mangrove forests, and is one of the largest reserves for the Bengal tiger . It is also home to a variety of bird, reptile and invertebrate species, including the salt - water crocodile . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> 29 </Td> <Td> Western Ghats </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> Agasthyamalai Sub-Cluster </Td> <Td> </Td> <Td> 2012 </Td> <Td> Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri Mountains, a mountain range along the western side of India and one of the world's ten "Hottest biodiversity hotspots" (sub cluster nomination) A total of thirty nine properties (including national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests) were designated as world heritage sites--twenty in the state of Kerala, ten in Karnataka, five in Tamil Nadu and four in Maharashtra . </Td> </Tr>

World heritage sites in india and what is being done to protect them