Sichuan-Tibet Railway Construction | UPSC

SICHUAN-TIBET RAILWAYS

SOURCES : THE HINDU

OVERVIEW

• The Chinese Government announced the railway link in the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20).

PROJECT DETAILS

• The project will link Sichuan province with Nyingchi, which lies near the border with India’s Arunachal Pradesh.
• The importance of the project, Chinese experts said, is two-fold.

• Secondly, it will run right up to Nyingchi near the border with India, which it will link to both Lhasa and Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan.
• The entire line will run from Chengdu to Lhasa, connecting the two capitals of TAR and Sichuan and cutting the journey from 48 hours to 13 hours.

STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE FOR CHINA

• The Sichuan-Tibet Railway’s construction has not only created a large number of jobs along the route, but is also helping revitalize the local countryside.
• It will also boost the social transformation and modernization of Tibet.-(CHINADAILY.COM.CN)
• And by improving the transport network in eastern and southeastern Tibet, it will create a sound business environment for Tibet.
• This will help the locals to attract foreign enterprises, capital and talents to participate in its development.
• Sichuan-Tibet Railway will connect the China-India-Bangladesh-Myanmar economic corridor to the Yangtze River.

• It will also accelerate cultural and personnel exchanges between Tibet and the rest of country, narrowing their geographical and psychological distance.

THREE SECTS OF SICHUAN TIBET RAILWAY

Sichuan Tibet Railway Station is divided into three parts –

1. Chengdu Kangding Railway
2. Kangding Nyingchi Railway
3. Lhasa Nyingchi Railway.

The construction began from the two ends of the railway.

CHENGDU KANGDING RAILWAY

• It began to build in 2014 and is predicted to be finished in 2018.
• This section stretches to 325km and the highest speed of the train running on Chengdu Kangding Railway reaches 200km/h.

KANGDING NYINGCHI RAILWAY

• Kangding Nyingchi Railway is the longest, toughest and most beautiful part among the three railways.
• Stating from 2018, it is expected to be completed in 2030.

• This railway will show you the quite enchanting natural views.

LHASA NYINGCHI RAILWAY

• The construction of Lhasa Nyingchi Railway began in the end of 2014.
• It is 135km long and expected to be finished in 2020.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

• The 435-km section from Nyingchi-Lhasa segment has been under construction since 2015, and will be finished by the end of next year.

• This includes a 525 metre-long bridge across the Yarlung Zangbo river, as the Brahmaputra is called in Tibet.
• The official Xinhua news agency said this makes it the world’s highest concrete-filled steel tube arch railway bridge.