His Excellency Bandaru Dattatreya, the 34th Governor of Himachal Pradesh along with Deputy Speaker Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok and Members of the Standing Committee
Dharamsala: His Excellency Bandaru Dattatreya, the 34th Governor of Himachal Pradesh (HP), expressed his firm belief in the aspiration of Tibetans in resolving the issue of Tibet through non-violence, during his visit to Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile earlier today.
The governor and his entourage were warmly received by Deputy Speaker Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok and members of the Standing Committee of the 16th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile in Library cum Conference hall of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile.
Deputy Speaker while welcoming the Governor expressed his happiness on getting the opportunity of listening to the Governor’s speech on Television and for meeting personally today. While introducing the members of the Standing Committee, he spoke about the Members of Parliament who were born in Tibet and later escaped to India.
At the same time, he thanked the government and people of India, especially of Himachal Pradesh for their support to Tibet and Tibetans and said: “ India and Indian people’s contribution to the struggle of Tibetans will be remembered forever by all the Tibetans.”
He apprised the Governor on the numbers of Tibetan Settlements, Institutes, Monasteries, and Nunneries in Himachal Pradesh (HP), which the Deputy Speaker had apprised to the former HP Governor on ‘Thank You India’ event organized by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) last year.
Deputy Speaker then briefed the Governor on the evolution, composition, and functioning of Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) and of the Standing Committee of TPiE. He further explained the records available in the Library cum Conference room (meeting venue) that holds the past 60 years’ documentations of the exile Tibetans. He also spoke about the previous generations of Tibetans who had worked hard for the cause of Tibet and the current third generation of Tibetans who are leading the Tibet movement.
Thereafter, the Deputy Speaker briefed the Governor on visitation program of Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) to the Tibetan Settlements and to different countries, the alarming rate of 153 self-immolations in Tibet, the evolution of All Party Indian Parliamentary Forum on Tibet (APIPFT), and on the Riga Resolution and Action Plan adopted by the 7th World Parliamentary Convention on Tibet (WPCT).
His Excellency Bandaru Dattatreya, the 34th Governor of Himachal Pradesh speaking to Members of the Standing Committee
Governor Bandaru Dattatreya lauded Tibetans for preserving Tibetan culture, language, and identity despite being outside of Tibet for 60 years. He then spoke about Tibet’s issue being a world issue and recently introduced resolution in the Congress of the US commending His Holiness the Dalai Lama for his commitment to global peace and non-violence.
He appreciated Deputy Speaker’s fluent Hindi and thanked for briefing on the numbers of Tibetan Settlement, Monasteries, Nunneries, and Institutes in Himachal Pradesh.
Governor then spoke about his audience with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, where he was told about the importance of ancient Indian knowledge and the combination of spirituality and scientific logic in the curriculum of the education system in India that they plan to implement in Himachal Pradesh, especially in Dharamsala.
Subsequently, he appreciated the cordial relationship between Indians and Tibetans and Tibetans’ contribution to the development of Himachal Pradesh (HP).
Finally, the Governor expressed his firm belief in the aspiration of Tibetans in resolving the issue of Tibet through non-violence and advised Tibetans to follow His Holiness the Dalai Lama and continue striving for the just cause of Tibet.
Deputy Speaker honored traditional Tibetan scarf and a Thanga Painting of Buddha (traditional Tibetan painting) to the Governor and the Governor along with his entourage visited the Parliament hall.
His Excellency Bandaru Dattatreya, the 34th Governor of Himachal Pradesh along with Deputy Speaker Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok and Members of the Standing Committee
Deputy Speaker Acharya Yeshi Phuntsok presenting Thangka to His Excellency Bandaru Dattatreya, the 34th Governor of Himachal Pradesh
