India To Showcase Buddhist Heritage

NEW DELHI, Sept 28 (Bernama) -- India will showcase its Buddhist heritage through the International Buddhist Conclave to be held at the ancient city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh over the weekend, the Ministry of Tourism said.

It said about 130 overseas guests including Buddhist Scholars, tour operators and media representatives from 30 countries such as Australia, Belgium, Bhutan, Cambodia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand will meet on Sept 29.

The conclave sessions include technical sessions on Buddhism for scholars, and travel and tourism sessions for the media and tour operators.

The delegates will also be taken for site visits to Bodhgaya and Nalanda, it said in a statement.

Buddhism originated in India and has spread to almost all the countries of the world, with the population of Buddhists estimated at 350 million.

Buddhist sites in India are found in Rajgir and Vaishali in Bihar, Sarnath and Sravasti in Uttar Pradesh, Ajanta and Ellora in Maharashtra, Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh, Amaravati and Nagarjuna Konda in Andhra Pradesh.

Sourced: bernama