A stray snake disrupted the valedictory function of the International Buddhist conference for several minutes at Udayagiri conference hall in Jajpur district of Odisha today.

A foreign delegate first spotted the reptile. On hearing about presence of snake, everybody panicked, stood up and ran helter-skelter before it was caught by police personnel on duty.

About 200 scholars, researchers, Buddhist monks, academicians, travel agents, and hoteliers from India and abroad attended the three-day event that concluded today.

Delegates from countries like Japan, Sri Lanka, USA, United Kingdom, Thailand, Korea, Australia, Bhutan and Poland attended the conference.

Odisha governor Mulalidhar Chandrakant Bhandare enlightened the guests about the rich cultural heritage of Odisha with special reference to Buddhism.

"Odisha houses a large number of Buddhist monuments. These monuments highlight our glorious past. Hence, Buddhist Scholars and Researchers from India and abroad pour into these historical sites because of the uniqueness of these monuments," Bhandare said.

He urged domestic and foreign tour operators, travel agents and hoteliers to promote these sites internationally.

Chairperson of National Monument Authority of India (NMAI) Himanshu Prava Ray said Odisha had to take a leading role to protect and preserve all these precious monuments for the posterity.