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The fire in Gyalthang destroyed hundreds of homes.

One of Tibet’s most influential Buddhist learning centres, the Larung Gar Buddhist Institute in Serthar, in the Karze region of eastern Tibet (incorporated into China’s Sichuan Province), was extensively damaged by fire on January 9.

Two nuns were injured, and more than 100 houses destroyed, although no loss of life was reported. The resident monks, nuns and local Tibetans made efforts to extinguish the fire but were hampered by heavy wind. The cause of the fire has not yet been identified.

Larung Gar was established in the 1980s during the liberalisation of religious practice which took place in the aftermath of the systematic annihilation of Tibetan culture and religion during China’s Cultural Revolution.  It attracts tens of thousands of disciples from around the world.

Two days later fire devastated the ancient Tibetan town of Gyalthang, known in Chinese as Dukezong, or “Shangri-la” as it has been named to attract tourists.  The fire destroyed more than two thirds of the town and left over 2,600 people homeless, although no human casualties have been reported. Arson has been ruled out. More than a thousand fire fighters were deployed at the blaze.

The Tibetan Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay has expressed deep concern about both fires and has called for quick restoration.  He called for the Gyalthang restoration to be done in the traditional Tibetan architectural style, and said he hopes there will be no repeat of what happened following the 2010 earthquake in Kyigudo, Yushul.  During that restoration, lands were illegally grabbed by Chinese authorities leading to protests by local Tibetans and a self-immolation by a Tibetan woman.

Gyalthang, which is incorporated into China’s Yunnan province, is a popular tourist destination, an easily accessible town which has largely been rebuilt to give an experience of the Tibetan way of life to tourists, many of whom are Chinese people seeking a change from polluted Chinese cities.

This is the third fire in Tibet in two months: the main prayer hall of the 433 year old Lithang monastery in the Karze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan was gutted in a fire in November last year.