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DHARAMSHALA, India - The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turns 90 on Sunday after a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying. The Nobel laureate is regarded as one of the world's most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism, but not by Beijing which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control. Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans took shelter in India and has since advocated for a peaceful "Middle Way" to seek autonomy and religious freedom for Tibetan people. Thousands of followers from around the world, celebrities, and officials from the United States and India, will attend his birthday celebrations in Dharamshala, the small Indian town in the foothills of the Himalayas where the Dalai Lama lives. During the celebrations, which will include cultural performances and remarks by long-time follower and Hollywood star Richard Gere as well as federal Indian ministers, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to deliver a speech. The preceding week of celebrations was particularly important for Tibetan Buddhists as the Dalai Lama had previously mentioned that he would speak about his succession at his 90th birthday. On Wednesday, he allayed their concerns about the future of the institution of the Dalai Lama by saying that he would reincarnate as the leader of the faith upon his death and that his non-profit institution, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, had the sole authority to recognise his successor. China has said that the succession will have to be approved by its leaders. The United States, which is seeking to counter the rise of China, has called on Beijing to cease what it describes as interference in the succession of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan Buddhist lamas. REUTERS
PRAYAGRAJ, India (AP) -- Millions of Hindu devotees, mystics and holy men and women from all across India flocked to the northern city of Prayagraj on Monday to kickstart the Maha Kumbh festival, which is being touted as the world's largest religious gathering. Over about the next six weeks, Hindu pilgrims will gather at the confluence of three sacred rivers -- the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati -- where they will take part in elaborate rituals, hoping to begin a journey to achieve Hindu philosophy's ultimate goal: the release from the cycle of rebirth. Here's what to know abo ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: Axiom-4 crew members, including Shubhanshu Shukla, were welcomed with hugs and drinks as they stepped into the International Space Station on Thursday. The newly launched spacecraft -- the fifth in the Dragon series and named Grace -- successfully completed a soft docking with the International Space Station at 4.01pm while orbiting above the North Atlantic Ocean."At 6:31 am EDT (4:01 IST) on Thursday, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked to the International Space Station for the fourth private astronaut mission to the orbiting laboratory, Axiom Mission 4," the National Aeronautics ...Read More >
Shimla, Jun 28 (PTI) India and Tibet are two ancient civilisations with interwoven roots that continue to shape a shared identity, Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Central Command, said on Saturday. He was addressing a seminar on shared Indo-Tibetan heritage and linked understanding of national security organised by the Army's central command in Shimla. Also Read | 'Hearts of 140 Crore Indians Beat With You': PM Narendra Modi Talks to India's 'First Astronaut' Shubhanshu Shukla Onboard ISS (Watch Video). The event brought together scholars, strategists and senio ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India, - The choice of a successor to the Dalai Lama, the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists, is a matter of riveting interest not only for followers of his religion, but also China, India, and the United States, for strategic reasons. The Nobel peace laureate, who turns 90 on Sunday, is regarded as one of the world's most influential figures, with a following extending well beyond Buddhism. HOW WAS HE CHOSEN? Tibetan tradition holds that the soul of a senior Buddhist monk is reincarnated after his death. The 14th Dalai Lama, born as Lhamo Dhondup on July 6, 1935, to a farmin ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India - The Dalai Lama will address a major three-day gathering of Buddhist religious figures this week ahead of his 90th birthday, as his followers wait for the Tibetan spiritual leader to share details about his succession in a move that could irk China. Beijing views the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, as a separatist and says it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama has said his successor will be born outside China and urged his followers to reject anyone chosen by Beijing. Tibetan Buddhists hold that enlightened monks are ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India: The Dalai Lama said on Wednesday (Jul 2) that he will be reincarnated and that his non-profit institution will have the sole authority to identify his reincarnation, countering China's insistence that it will choose the successor of the Tibetan Buddhist leader. The remarks by the Dalai Lama, who turns 90 on Sunday, end speculation among millions of followers about whether there would be another Dalai Lama after his death. The Nobel peace laureate was speaking during a week of celebrations to mark his birthday which was expected to be closely watched by the US, India and Ch ...Read More >
Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], July 2 (ANI): As the Dala Lama left the decision of his successor to the Gaden Phodrang, leaving no role for the Chinese, Penpa Tsering Sikyong, President of the Central Tibetan Administration, said that the Tibetan people will never accepy China's usage of reincarnation for political gain. 'During the 15th Tibetan religious conference held in Dharamsala... a consensus was reached on the following important points- The core process of recognising the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama is as per the unique Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Hence, we not only stro ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India - The Dalai Lama said on Wednesday his Gaden Phodrang Trust would have the sole authority to recognise his future reincarnation, rejecting any role for China in choosing who succeeds him as the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists. WHAT IS THE GADEN PHODRANG TRUST? The non-profit was registered in 2011 in the northern Indian town of Dharamshala, where the Dalai Lama is based. Its members include the Dalai Lama, senior monk Samdhong Rinpoche and close aides who work in the Dalai Lama's office in Dharamshala. The Dalai Lama heads the trust and its "alternate chairperson", or ...Read More >
New Delhi: In a significant diplomatic signal, India on Thursday affirmed that the succession of the Dalai Lama will be determined solely by the current Tibetan spiritual leader and through established Buddhist conventions -- a stance seen as a clear rejection of China's attempts to assert control over the process. According to an NDTV report, Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju emphasized that no external power has the authority to interfere in the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Rijiju, who is also a practising Buddhist, said, "The Dalai Lama is ...Read More >
Assam Beef Ban: A political row has erupted over the Assam government's decision to ban the public consumption of beef in the state with the Opposition labelling it "against the right to freedom" while the ruling BJP lauding the state Cabinet's call. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced on Wednesday that his government has decided to ban the consumption of beef in restaurants, hotels and public places, drawing sharp reactions from the Opposition. Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hasan ...Read More >
NEW DELHI (AP) -- Three people died and at least a dozen are feared missing after being swept away in a flash flood triggered by torrential rains in the north Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, local authorities said on Thursday. A rescue operation has been launched to trace the missing, said Dinesh Sharma, a local government spokesperson in Kangra. The town is about 18 kilometres (11 miles) from Dharamshala, a popular tourist destination known for its Tibetan culture and as the home of Tibetan spiritual leader, Dalai Lama. Sudhir Sharma, a lawmaker from Dharamshala, said in a social media po ...Read More >
New Delhi: The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is probing from all angles, including sabotage, in the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that killed 274 people on board and on the ground last month, Minister of State (MoS) For Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said. Mohol said the black box of the Air India flight AI 171 that has been recovered is in AAIB's custody and will not be outside the country for a thorough assessment. The MoS was speaking at the Pune chapter of the Emerging Business Conclave. "It (plane crash) was an unfortunate incident. The AAIB has begun a full investig ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has decided to lift aid cuts for Tibetans in exile and provide $7 million in financing for projects such as those supporting health and education, the leader of the Tibetan government in-exile said on Wednesday. The Trump administration started cutting foreign aid after taking office in January as part of its "America First" policy, which has had an impact on programmes including those aimed at securing food supplies and preventing the spread of HIV in some of the poorest parts of the world. Penpa Tsering, leader of t ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 2 (PTI) State-owned NMDC has reported a record 31 per cent jump in its iron ore production to 11.99 million tonnes (MT) in the April-June quarter of 2025-26 compared to 9.19 MT in the year-ago period, according to a statement. Its sales rose by 14 per cent to 11.51 MT in the first quarter of FY26 compared to 10.07 MT in the first quarter of 2024-25, the company said in the statement on Wednesday. Also Read | How Is the Next Dalai Lama Chosen? Know How the Successor of the 14th Dalai Lama Will Be Picked. In June, the company produced 3.57 MT of iron ore, registering a 5 per ce ...Read More >
DEHRADUN, India - Tibetans in exile celebrate the 90th birthday of spiritual leader the Dalai Lama next week, an occasion overshadowed by uncertainty about the future of the role and what it means for their movement. The charismatic Nobel Peace Prize-winning Buddhist -- who Tibetans say is the 14th reincarnation of the 600-year-old post -- will reveal if there will be another Dalai Lama after him. The inevitable change ahead brings wider concerns for Tibetans over the struggle to keep their identity alive after generations in exile, following a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule. The ...Read More >
Srinagar- Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday said foreign countries were told clearly during the post-Operation Sindoor diplomatic outreach that in case of a fresh provocation, India would repeat its action. Speaking at a discussion at the Ahmedabad Management Association, Tharoor said Indian delegations which visited foreign countries in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor managed to convey that India acted with restraint and responsibility. "In other places, we actually were able to get some very high-placed people to say not only that they respected and supported India's right of self- ...Read More >
ISKCON Bangladesh has strongly condemned the arrest of Chinmoy Krishna Das, a prominent Hindu leader, and spokesperson for the "Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatani Jagaran Jot" and also issued a list of demands to the Muhammad Yunus-led government for subsequent violence and attacks against Sanatanis in various regions of Bangladesh. The organisation has also issued a statement and called upon the government authorities to promote peaceful coexistence. ISKCON Bangladesh made note of the above points and more matters in a statement issued, regarding the current situation in Bangladesh and the arres ...Read More >
Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], December 11 (ANI): A parliamentary delegation from New Zealand and Fiji on Wednesday highlighted their solidarity with the Tibetan people's ongoing struggle for freedom. The event, which was held on Tuesday, followed the Central Tibetan Administration's official commemoration of the 35th anniversary of the Dalai Lama receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. Also Read | Joe Biden Slams US President-Elect Donald Trump's Tariff Approach, Calls 'Action a Major Mistake'. The delegation, which included New Zealand Members of Parliament (MPs) Joseph Mooney, Ingrid L ...Read More >
NEW DELHI - India is committed to efforts to develop its restive territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on June 6, accusing neighbour Pakistan of seeking to destroy livelihoods there with April's deadly attack on tourists. He was speaking on his first visit to the Himalayan region since Islamist attackers targeted Hindu tourists in the popular Pahalgam area, killing 26 men, triggering hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbours that ended in ceasefire last month. "The atmosphere of development that emerged in Jammu and Kashmir will not be hindered by the attac ...Read More >
Katra: Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Jammu and Kashmir on Friday to inaugurate multiple rail projects, including the world's highest Chenab Rail Bridge, the Anji Khad Bridge, and the Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat Express, as part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link. These railway projects directly connect Jammu and Kashmir to the rest of the country. The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link is an all-weather railway corridor designed to provide seamless connectivity to the region through the rail network. During his visit, PM Modi reviewed the Chenab bridge, world's highest ra ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India - The Dalai Lama will meet 11 senior Buddhist monks on July 2 morning before delivering a written statement that will "most probably" talk about his eventual succession as the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists, an official said. Tibetan Buddhists believe that enlightened monks are reborn to continue their spiritual legacy. The 14th Dalai Lama will turn 90 on July 6 and has long been expected to use the occasion to share possible clues on where his successor, a boy or a girl, could be found following his death. Beijing views the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 after a ...Read More >
Dharamshala, India/Hong Kong (CNN) -- The Dalai Lama has announced that he will have a successor after his death, continuing a centuries-old tradition that has become a flashpoint in the struggle with China's Communist Party over Tibet's future. Tibetan Buddhism's spiritual leader made the declaration on Wednesday in a video message to religious elders gathering in Dharamshala, India, where the Nobel Peace laureate has lived since fleeing Tibet after a failed uprising against Chinese communist rule in 1959. "I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue," the Dalai Lama ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 3 (PTI) In an apparent snub to China, Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday asserted that the decision on the Incarnation of the Dalai Lama would be taken by the established institution and the Dalai Lama himself and no one else. On Wednesday, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama said that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue and only the Gaden Phodrang Trust will have the authority to recognise his future reincarnation. Talking to reporters here, Rijiju said the Dalai Lama is the "most important and defining institution" for the Buddhists. "And all tho ...Read More >
Silchar: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday visited the flood-ravaged districts of Hailakandi and Sribhumi in the Barak Valley. He assured affected residents of providing timely disbursement of rehabilitation grants and swift repair of damaged infrastructure.This marks Sarma's second visit to the flood-hit region within four days, underscoring the gravity of the situation. Speaking to the media in Sribhumi after inspecting multiple relief camps, the CM said, "Flood-related problems may persist till July. I will return before Durga Puja to ensure that roads and infrastructure ar ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India (AP) -- The Dalai Lama attended a celebration of his 90th birthday according to the Tibetan calendar. The event Monday in honor of the Tibetan spiritual leader was held at the Tsuglagkhang temple complex in Dharamshala, India. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors. ...Read More >
Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], June 30 (ANI): The main Tibetan temple, Tsuglagkhang, in Himachal Pradesh's Dharamshala, erupted in vibrant festivities on Monday, as devotees and crowds gathered there to celebrate the 90th birthday of the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, the 14th Dalai Lama. The celebration on June 30 is based on the dates as per the Tibetan calendar, whereas, according to the Gregorian calendar, the birthday of the 14th Dalai Lama falls on July 6. Also Read | Laos Job Scam Alert: Cybercrime Centre Reveals Modus Operandi of Fraudsters Luring Indians Into Cybercr ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, India: The Dalai Lama will address a major three-day gathering of Buddhist religious figures this week ahead of his 90th birthday, as his followers wait for the Tibetan spiritual leader to share details about his succession in a move that could irk China. Beijing views the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, as a separatist and says it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama has said his successor will be born outside China and urged his followers to reject anyone chosen by Beijing. Tibetan Buddhists hold that enlightened monks are ...Read More >
Imphal, Jul 2 (PTI) Former Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Wednesday asserted the urgent need for strict verification mechanisms and close coordination between Aadhaar issuing authorities, ILP enforcement agencies, and local administrative bodies to ensure that identity documents are issued only to those who are rightfully entitled. In a post on X, Singh wrote: "I appreciate the enhanced measures undertaken by the State Government to strengthen and streamline the Aadhaar issuance process in Manipur. These efforts are critical to safeguarding our integrity and identity." Also Read | H ...Read More >
DHARAMSHALA, INDIA: A few days before his 90 birth anniversary, the Dalai Lama has given his followers assurance that his spiritual ancestry will last beyond his death. In an authoritative video address from Dharamshala, India, where festivities marking his milestone birthday are in progress, the Tibetan spiritual leader professed that he will be "reawakened," putting an end to long-lasting conjecture that he might be the last in the venerable line of Dalai Lamas. According to a recent Reuters report, more than 100 maroon-robed monks gathered in the library cheered as the Nobel Peace laureat ...Read More >
New Delhi [India], June 5 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met the Foreign Ministers of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan on Thursday, ahead of the fourth edition of the India-Central Asia Dialogue. He shared the details of the meetings through several posts on X. Upon meeting the Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, the EAM said, 'Pleased to meet DPM & FM Murat Nurtleu of Kazakhstan this morning. Appreciated his reaffirmation of zero tolerance for terrorism. Discussed various facets of our Strategic Partnership focusing on political, trade, investment and energy cooperation. A ...Read More >