Dalai Lama 'saddened' by Sikkim earthquake; donates Rs 5 lakh

Dharamshala, Sep 21 (PTI) Tibetan spiritual leader the
Dalai Lama has expressed his condolences over the deaths and
destruction caused by the recent earthquake in Sikkim and
other parts of northeastern region in India.
He has offered his prayers for those affected by the
natural calamity and also donated Rs 500,000 from the Dalai
Lama Trust towards relief work in the affected areas.
"I was saddened to learn about the loss of life and
damage to property that the recent earthquake has caused
across isolated Himalayan regions, particularly in Sikkim.
"I offer my sympathy and condolences to all those
families, who have been directly affected by what I understand
is one of the worst earthquakes in recent memory," the Dalai
Lama said in a letter to the Sikkim Chief Minister.
An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale struck
Sikkim on Sunday evening, which also shook parts of north and
east India and parts of Bangladesh and Nepal. The quake has
claimed at least 57 lives in Sikkim.