Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh), Nov 9 : The Dalai Lama today opened a district hospital in Tawang and donated Rs 20 lakh for its building.

After opening the Kahndo-Dowa Songma Tawang district hospital, he consecrated a Buddhist statue at its entrance.

Later, he visited the Yid-Ta-G-Choezin ground where he planted saplings and also distributed some of them among the thousands of devotees assembled there.

Addressing the devotees, the Dalai Lama asked the younger generation to join monasteries to carry forward Buddha''s message of peace.

"Buddhist culture and tradition have to be preserved at every cost," he said.

Speaking on the occasion, State Chief Minister Dorjee Kandu urged the people to preserve the Buddhist culture in this part of the country.

The Dalai Lama, who arrived here on Sunday on a four-day visit, had criticised China for objecting to his trip to Arunachal Pradesh and expressed surprise over its claims to Tawang, a revered seat of Buddhism.

The Tibetan spiritual leader is on a tour of this remote north-eastern state after a gap of six years. It also marks 50 years of his escape from Tibet after a failed uprising against the Chinese rule there.

The Nobel Laureate has characterised his "emotional" visit to Tawang, which has strong ties to Tibet, as non-political. (ANI)