Two Indian cities, Gwalior and Kozhikode, have made it to the list of UNESCO Creative Cities on World Cities Day, the UN agency said on Tuesday. Sharing the news, the Union Minister for Culture and Tourism called this a moment of pride for the country. Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior has been categorised as the 'City of Music' while Kozhikode in Kerala has been bestowed with the stage 'City of Literature'.
"A proud moment for India. Kozhikode in Kerala has been designated as the UNESCO ‘City of Literature’ and Gwalior as the ‘City of Music’ in the latest @UNESCO List of Creative Cities Network," the minister said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
"These cities get acknowledged & recognition for their strong commitment to harnessing culture and creativity. Congratulations to all stakeholders!" he added.
A total of 55 cities have joined the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), an official press release of the UN agency said. It added that the new cities were acknowledged for their strong commitment to "harnessing culture and creativity as part of their development strategies, and displaying innovative practices in human-centred urban planning."
"With the latest additions, the Network now counts 350 cities in more than one hundred countries, representing seven creative fields: Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts and Music," the statement read.
Here are the cities that made it to the list:
- Asaba – Film
- Ashgabat – Design
- Banja Luka – Music
- Battambang – Gastronomy
- Bissau – Music
- Bolzano – Music
- Bremen – Literature
- Buffalo City – Literature
- Bukhara – Crafts and Folk Art
- Bydgoszcz – Music
- Caen – Media Arts
- Caracas – Music
- Casablanca – Media Arts
- Castelo Branco – Crafts and Folk Art
- Cetinje – Design
- Chaozhou – Gastronomy
- Chiang Rai – Design
- Chongqing – Design
- Concepción – Music
- Da Lat – Music
- Fribourg – Gastronomy
- Gangneung – Gastronomy
- Granada[1] – Design
- Gwalior – Music
- Herakleion – Gastronomy
- Hobart – Literature
- Hoi An – Crafts and Folk Art
- Iasi – Literature
- Iloilo City – Gastronomy
- Ipoh – Music
- Kathmandu – Film
- Kozhikode – Literature
- Kutaisi – Literature
- Mexicali – Music
- Montecristi – Crafts and Folk Art
- Montreux – Music
- Nkongsamba – Gastronomy
- Novi Sad – Media Arts
- Okayama – Literature
- Ouarzazate – Film
- Oulu – Media Arts
- Penedo – Film
- Rio de Janeiro – Literature
- Şanlıurfa – Music
- Suphanburi – Music
- Surakarta – Crafts and Folk Art
- Taif – Literature
- Toulouse – Music
- Tukums – Literature
- Ulaanbaatar – Crafts and Folk Art
- Umngeni Howick – Crafts and Folk Art
- Valencia – Design
- Varaždin – Music
- Veliky Novgorod – Music
- Vicente Lopez – Film