Tibetan Information Office (TIO) is based in Canberra.

His Holiness Expresses Sadness at Loss of Life and Devastation Caused by Gujarat Flooding

His Holiness the Dalai Lama

DHARAMSHALA: His Holiness the Dalai Lama has written to the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Vijay Rupani, on 1 August to express sadness at the loss of life and devastation of property that has occurred as a result of severe monsoon flooding in parts of Gujarat.

“I understand that everything is being done to rescue those affected and that relief efforts are underway,” he wrote. “I would like to express my deep condolences to you, the families who have lost loved ones and others affected by some of the worst flooding in more than a century,” His Holiness wrote.

“As a mark of my sympathy, I would like to make a donation from the Dalai Lama Trust towards the relief and rescue efforts.”

Severe monsoon flooding has killed at least 213 people and displaced many more in Gujarat, according to media reports. Meteorologists have said the rainfall in Gujarat, close to the heaviest in 112 years, was the result of low-pressure systems developing simultaneously over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian sea.