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While urban heritage is growing its significance in the global urban context, there remains a lot of ambiguity in its perception. This article conceptualises the evolution and the various approaches to urban cultural heritage, understand its meaning, values and significance in the society and underlines its relationship with urbanisation in a developing city. Keywords: Urbanheritage; Conservation; Heritagemeaningconcept; evolutionmeaning culturalheritage; urbanisation

Achieving sustainable development has been a global concern for decades. The urban situation in most developing countries has been chaotic with a fast-paced unregulated developmental boom. In India, the uncontrolled urban advancement has been an outcome of its rapid urbanisation in nearly every city. Consequently, this is leading to the hasty decline in the urban cultural built heritage. This paper, therefore, tries to look into urban (built) heritage in Indian Cities and makes an endeavour to point out how rapid urbanisation and unplanned development can affect the city heritage. Deemed as a fast urbanising Indian city (also a smart city) with evaporating cultural heritage, the research undertook Visakhapatnam as a case study. Urban heritage – Cultural heritage – urbanisation - Vizag heritage - Vernacular-building - Endangered cultural heritage - Urbanisation and conservation - heritage in urbanising societies. Keywords: Urban heritage; Cultural heritage; Urbanisation; Vizag heritage; Vernacular building; Endangered cultural heritage; Urbanisation conservation heritage in urbanising societies