The main organizing committee of the International Buddhist Conference has started preparations for the event that is going to be held from May 5 to 7 on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti. The three-day event will take place in Lumbini, in which participants from 21 countries will come to attend the conference.
A meeting of main organising committee held on 17th February 2020 at the Ministry of Culture Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) informed that participants from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, India, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Japan, South Korea, Bhutan, Mongolia, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, America, United Kingdom, Russia, Costa Rica, France and Germany have confirmed their participation.
Likewise, several researchers and students of Buddhism will also take part in the event.
However, due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Chinese participants may decide to cancel their registration.
NATTA President Mr. Achyut Guragain participated in the meeting as one of the Member of the Main Organizing Committee.
The meeting has decided to observe Buddha Jayanti this year with a week-long celebration. On the first day of Buddha Jayanti week on May 1, a cleaning campaign will be organised in Lumbini, Bhairahawa, Kapilvastu and Ramgram areas. It will be followed by a blood donation programme on May 2 and tree plantation on May 3 in Rupandehi and Kapilvastu. On May 4, a peace marathon and cultural events will be organised in Lumbini. Meanwhile, during the three days of the conference, peace rallies and chanting of Paritran Paath will be organised.
NATTA thanks to Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation for having NATTA President as one of the Member of the Main Organizing Committee. Likewise, it was also proposed to have the second edition of Buddhist International Travel Mart (BITM) together with this event as both the events share a similar significance promoting Buddhism. Mr. Guragain also requested at the meeting to form a BITM Main Organizing Committee and support in the preparation to make upcoming BITM a grand success.