Each year on March 10, hundreds of Tibetans sneak into India via Nepal to listen to their revered spiritual leader who is heads Tibet's government-in-exile from Mcleodganj, a hilly town in India's northern state of Himachal Pradesh.

All the visitors to Dalai Lama's annual sermons on Wednesday will be thoroughly screened.

Hundreds of Tibetan refugees have already descended on Mcleodganj. The trip from Lhasa, 1,100 miles east of Mcleodganj, is treacherous. The mountainous borders between Tibet, India and Nepal are impossible to guard during the winter months.

Each year nearly 3,500 Tibetan refugees make their way on foot in bitter cold to Nepal and then to India. Hundreds of others come for a visit to drop their children to receive a cultural education that is unavailable in Tibet.

Indian authorities have already provided The Dalai Lama with a security that is generally reserved for the visiting head of a nation. The spiritual leader has been provided with bulletproof Mercedes Benz cars and armed escorts around the clock.

Metal detectors and baggage X-ray scanners have also been put up at the government-in-exile headquarters.

In last two years, Indian authorities have arrested five Tibetans who were allegedly Chinese spies operating in Mcleodganj. The police recovered maps, sketches and other documents relating to Dalai Lama's security.

The Dalai Lama and 100,000 of his followers had fled to India after the failed uprising of 1959.

The Dalai Lama, whom China accuses of trying to break up the country, has been calling for more autonomy for Tibet rather than independence. He has traveled across the world to generate support for Tibetan's cause.

In 1989, The Dalai Lama was bestowed with the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to promote religious freedom.

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Last updated: 9-Mar-99