PM Modi in Bodh Gaya to attend international Buddhist conclave
Patna, Sep 5: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Bihar's Gaya district on Saturday to attend the concluding ceremony of the three-day international Buddhist conclave in Bodh Gaya, officials said.
Modi
was
received
by
the
Bihar
governor
Ram
Nath
Kovind
and
Minister
Shyam
Razak
at
Gaya's
airport.
This
is
Modi's
first
visit
as
prime
minister
to
Bodh
Gaya,
a
holy
place
for
Buddhists,
about
110
km
from
here.
Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee secretary N. Dorjee said Modi will attend the ceremony in the temple premises as will the heads of delegations of 90 countries, including former Sri Lankan president Chandrika Kumaratunga and the foreign ministers of Japan, Mayanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, and Taiwan.
Modi will address monks and religious heads of several countries, attend a special prayer and visit a photo exhibition on the Buddhist heritage and the holy relics of Lord Buddha at the Mahabodhi Society of India.
According to police officials, Bodh Gaya has been turned into a fortress and a 16-member Special Protection Group (SPG) team has been monitoring the security arrangements.
IANS