Dalai Lama honoured with Gandhi Mandela Award for peace efforts

SHIMLA : Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Saturday felicitated the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso with the Gandhi Mandela Award presented by the namesake foundation at a historic ceremony held at Thekchen, Mcleod Ganj, Dharamshala in Kangra district.

Thanking the foundation for the honour, awarded to global leaders as recognition of their efforts in championing peace, unity and freedom, the Dalai Lama said non-violence and compassion were essential for world peace — before adding the principles are ingrained in Indian culture.

“Any problem can’t be solved in war but through dialogue and peace”, he said.

Notably, the Dalai Lama, the spiritual head of the Tibetan diaspora, had in 1959 fled Lhasa after the Chinese troops marched into the erstwhile capital of the then independent state. The exiled leader has been living in Dharamshala, where he set up a self-styled Tibetan government in exile known as the central Tibetan Administration. He had been pushing for greater autonomy for the Chinacontrolled Tibetan Autonomous region since.