Kathmandu, 30 April (H.S.):

The Prime Minister’s planned visit to Lumbini has been cancelled. The Prime Minister’s Office has confirmed that the tour has been called off, even though full preparations had been made for him to attend the 2570th Buddha Jayanti celebrations. The Speaker, D. P. Aryal, will now be sent as the chief guest to represent the government at the event.

The Buddha Jayanti festivities in Lumbini are scheduled to begin on 1 May.

Once the Prime Minister’s visit had been finalised, the Lumbini Development Trust had made extensive preparations across the district. According to the drafted programme, the Prime Minister’s participation was limited to attending the puja ceremony. Arrangements across the entire district had already been completed for him to arrive in Rupandehi on the evening of 30 April and perform the prayer ceremony on the morning of 1 May.

It has been a long‑standing tradition that the head of state or the head of government attends the Buddha Jayanti celebrations and delivers a formal address. However, despite the expectation of the Prime Minister’s visit this year, his speech was not included in the official schedule.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar