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| Dalai Lama's Paddar visit begins today | | |
EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, June 4: The Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama's two-day visit to the remote Paddar area of the mountain-locked Kishtwar district begins tomorrow.He is visiting Paddar on the invitation of Himalayan Buddhist Association (HBA). He would stay at Paddar for two days and return to Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh on June 6, official sources said.
The state government has already made massive security arrangements for the security of the Buddhist spiritual leader and to ensure that there is no militant violence on the occasion.
Police and army jawans carried out a recce of the area over a week back, the sources added, saying troops were deployed on the peaks overlooking the venue where the spiritual was scheduled attend the function.
The function would also be attended by chief minister Omar Abdullah, sources said.Divisional commissioner Pawan Kotwal, accompanied by other senior functionaries, had visited Paddar two days back to personally review the arrangements made for the smooth conduct of the function.This would be the Lama's first visit to any militancy-infested part of the state and second to Jammu. Nearly a decade ago, he had visited here on the Jammu University invitation.
Sources said even as no Buddhist had been killed in Kishtwar in two decades of militancy, police had made adequate arrangements to ensure that no unpleasant incident took place during the Lama's visit to Paddar, internationally known for its sapphire mines.Over 30 militants of different outfits, including Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), were active in Kishtwar mountains, the sources added.Sources said a strategy had been formulated to keep militants away from the populated areas at Paddar during the Lama's stay there.
Paddar, which borders Zanskar in Ladakh, has a Buddhist population of about 6,000. The area also houses a historic monastery at Kabban Losani.
HBA chairman Tharing Ungghuk said he was excited about the Lama's visit. Not only he, the entire Buddhist population was anxiously waiting to welcome the spiritual leader, he added.
He said for the Paddar Buddhists, several of whom had not even visited the Kishtwar town in their lives, meeting Dalai Lama would be a big occasion.
The function would be held in a middle-level school of about 200 Buddhist children, Tharing informed.
During his stay at Paddar, he would also give a discourse on Buddhist teachings.He would also meet the school children of the Buddhist school and distribute gifts among them.
Sources said Dalai Lama would be received in Kishtwar town by Buddhists and other locals and taken to Paddar in a procession.
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