Tenzin Gyatso, the Tibetan spiritual leader the 14th Dalai Lama, arrived in Gangtok on Monday morning for a three-day visit. He came to Sikkim after a gap of 13 years. Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang received the Dalai Lama at the Libing army helipad where he landed around 10.30 am in East Sikkim.
He was given a grand welcome by monks of various monasteries in the state with ‘Sherbang’, a traditional Buddhist ritual of dance and prayer. Some members of the exiled Tibetan Parliament, Tibetan Settlement Office and Local Tibetan Assembly were also present to greet him. On his way to a hotel in Gangtok hundreds of people queued up on both sides of the highway from Deorali to Zero Point to get a glimpse of the 87 year old spiritual leader. The Dalai Lama will leave for Salugara in Siliguri, West Bengal, after staying in Gangtok till Thursday morning.