India's government is prohibiting foreign media personnel from covering the Dalai Lama's visit to a border monastery.

India's central government has informed foreign correspondents they will not be permitted to enter the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh while the Dalai Lama is there. The Tibetan spiritual leader begins a five-day visit to a border-area monastery in the state on Sunday.

The Foreign Correspondents Club of South Asia issued a statement Thursday expressing its disappointment with the Indian government's travel restrictions.

Club president Heather Timmons, of the New York Times, says the central government did not issue any permits for journalists to visit Arunachal Pradesh for the Dalai Lama's visit, but the state government had granted permission.

"Today we were surprised and very disappointed to learn that permits that were issued by the state government to travel to the state during the visit have been canceled by the central government," she said.

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