BEIJING: A Chinese travel company has announced plans to send 10,000 Chinese nationals to visit Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, via chartered flights.
Beijing Zhentu Attain Happy International Travel Service made the announcement during the launch ceremony of the ‘Lumbini Prayer and Merit Garden: Public Welfare Project’ at the Embassy of Nepal in Beijing last week.
The garden is being constructed in Lumbini—a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the birthplace of Gautam Buddha— with the foundation stone scheduled to be laid on March 26.
During the event, Charge d’affaires Roshan Khanal and Li Bo, chairman of the China–Nepal Cultural Exchange Center, jointly unveiled a model of the proposed project.
The facility will include spaces for prayer, meditation, religious ceremonies, and spiritual practices, along with cultural exhibition halls, public welfare facilities, and landscaped gardens for tourism.
Officials said the project would further strengthen cultural, religious, educational, and tourism cooperation between the two countries. In collaboration with Lumbini Buddhist University, it will also support international exchanges in religious and cultural studies, academic research and Buddhist studies.
According to project officials, the garden will be built on two campuses of Lumbini Buddhist University, covering an area of about 13,000 square metres. The project is estimated to cost around 30 million Chinese yuan and is expected to be completed within three years.
Vice Chancellor of Lumbini Buddhist University, Prof Dr Subarna Lal Bajracharya, in a video address, said that peace, friendly cultural exchanges, and shared prosperity were essential in today’s tense global environment.
A promotional video of Lumbini was also screened during the programme.
At the event, the China–Nepal Cultural Exchange Center appointed the Beijing Zhentu Attain Happy International Travel Service as a cultural promotion envoy for Nepal–China tourism cooperation.
The program, organised to promote cultural, religious, and tourism cooperation between China and Nepal, also featured a performance by Chinese musicians. Photographs of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lumbini were displayed within the embassy premises.
