Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, is considering appointing a regent to lead the Tibetan movement after his death.

According to a newspaper report, the idea was discussed this week at an unprecedented meeting of 600 Tibetan exiles in Dharamsala.

Dalai Lama is now 73 and has been suffering from ill health. So he intends to ensure a smooth succession after his death.

The most likely candidate for the regency is the 23-year-old Karmapa Lama, the third highest in the Tibetan Buddhist hierarchy, who was born and raised in Tibet but escaped to India in 2000.

Tibetan exiles are keen to prevent China from hijacking his reincarnation, as it has tried to do with other of the most senior positions in Tibetan Buddhism.