New Delhi - There is excitement in the air in Thimphu, capital of the tiny Himalayan nation of Bhutan, as it prepares for the coronation of its fifth king - the 28-year-old Oxford-educated Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuk on Thursday.

"The mood is festive. Everybody is getting ready. The lights are up as are the flags," Khandu-om Dorji, special programme officer in the Bhutanese prime minister's office said over telephone

The new king's father, Bhutan's much-loved monarch Jigme Singye Wangchuk, 53, shocked his people in December 2006, when he announced he was abdicating in favour of his son and Bhutan would become a democracy under a new, young king.

Jigme Khesar has been acting king for two years and it was announced in July that astrologers had chosen the auspicious eighth day of the ninth Bhutanese month of the male earth rat year - which falls on Thursday - for his formal coronation.

The most significant ceremony of the coronation is over. On Saturday, at a Buddhist chapel in the old capital Punakha, about 75 kilometres from Thimphu, the new king received five coloured scarves in a mystical century-old tradition.

"This is the ceremony that spiritually empowers him to be king," said Kinley Dorji, editor-in-chief of Bhutanese newspaper Kuensel.

The young monarch, who has been educated at top schools in the United States and Britain, and the ceremonies that surround his formal anointment are symbolic of Bhutan, also known as Druk Yul or land of the thunder dragon, where Jigme Singye has carefully guided a meeting of deep-rooted traditions and modern ways of life over three decades.

Thirty years ago, the Himalayan kingdom, landlocked by China and India, was one of the world's most isolated nations. The fourth king's reign saw the introduction of direct international flights, the mobile telephone, television and the internet.

When the ban on television was lifted in 1999, King Jigme Singye described it as an important step on the road to democracy, but he also warned that its misuse could erode traditional Bhutanese values.

Bhutan is the only country in the world that has a national measure of happiness. Progress in the Buddhist nation is counted in terms of Gross National Happiness and not just economic indicators.

King Jigme Singye also introduced in 1999 the first reforms for the transition from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy which culminated in democratic elections in March 2008 in which Jigmi Y Thinley became prime minister.

"The coronation marks a new beginning with a new king in a new role to guide our fledgling democracy," said Kandhu-om Dorji. "But, it is also a sad day as it marks a closure of the amazing transition we have enjoyed under our fourth king. People will miss him."

Jigme Khesar is the son of the third of Jigme Singye's four wives, all of them sisters. The eldest of 10 siblings, he is unmarried, and has often been described as one of the world's most eligible bachelors.

The young prince trained to be monarch at his father's side and over the past year has traversed each and every district of this little nation of less than 700,000 people, meeting and interacting with residents of remote hamlets.

"When he returned from the old capital after Saturday's ceremony, the three-hour journey took him almost nine hours as people thronged both sides of the road to meet him," said Kinely Dorji.

"He got out of the car and walked for five hours. They were touching him, praying, some were in tears, it was quite overwhelming," he said.

"We are a new democracy, the institutions are still being built. We need the king. His role as constitutional monarch is critical and important. He is a symbol of unity and stability. He holds us all together," Khandu-om Dorji said.

On Thursday, the coronation ceremony will take place in the imposing golden throne room at Tashichhodzong, a fortress that is now the seat of the Bhutanese government.

Jigme Singye will place Bhutan's raven crown on his son's head in the presence of members of the royal family, high officials, envoys and leaders of about 30 countries with whom Bhutan has relations as well as representatives of the public.

The coronation will be telecast live and people are expected to gather in the square in front of the palace to join in. This would be followed by Buddhist rituals and felicitations by at least 20,000 people.

Three days of celebrations in the form of cultural programmes with traditional songs, dances, spiritual events as well as modern music concerts will end on Saturday. "We have never had a party on this scale," said Kinley Dorji. (dpa)