• What? Inauguration of Grand International Exposition of Sacred Piprahwa Relics
• By: PM Narendra Modi
• Title: ‘The Light and the Lotus: Relics of the Awakened One’
• Where? Rai Pithora Cultural Complex, New Delhi
• Organised by: Ministry of Culture
• Theme: Reunification and display of Piprahwa relics of Lord Buddha (after 127 years)
• Repatriation Partner: Godrej Industries Group (PPP model)

About Piprahwa Relics Exposition:
Organiser: The exposition is organised by the Ministry of Culture under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the exposition showcases the sacred Piprahwa relics of Lord Buddha, marking their historic reunification after 127 years.
Dignitaries: Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Ministry of Culture; Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs (MPA); Union Minister of State (MoS) Ramdas Athawale, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE); Union MoS Rao Inderjit Singh, Ministry of Culture and Lieutenant (Lt) Governor of Delhi Vinai Kumar Saxena were present at the event.
Repatriation: The repatriation of the Peppé family’s Piprahwa Buddhist relics was finalized on July 30, 2025, after the Ministry of Culture halted an auction at Sotheby’s Hong Kong and secured their return through a first-of-its-kind Public–Private Partnership(PPP) with the Godrej Industries Group, supported by global Buddhist communities.
Event Highlights:
Collection: It presents over 80 artefacts from the 6th century BCE (Before Common Era) to the present, including sculptures, manuscripts, thangkas, gem relics, reliquaries, ritual objects, and the original monolithic stone coffer.
Curation: The exhibition is thematically organised with immersive audio-visuals, digital reconstructions, and a reconstructed interpretive model inspired by the Sanchi Stupa.
Reunification: For the first time since 1898, relics from the 1898 Kapilavastu excavation, the 1971–75 excavations, and the repatriated Peppé family collection are displayed together.
Discovery: The Piprahwa relics were discovered in 1898 by William Claxton Peppé at an ancient stupa identified with Kapilavastu, where Lord Buddha spent his early life and were subsequently distributed among the King of Siam, England, and the Indian Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal (WB).
About Ministry of Culture:
Union Minister – Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (Constituency- Jodhpur, Rajasthan)
Minister of State (MoS)– Rao Inderjit Singh (Constituency-Gurugram, Haryana)