China on Friday launched its first fully electrified bullet train in Tibet, connecting the provincial capital Lhasa and Nyingchi, a strategically located Tibetan border town close to Arunachal Pradesh.
The neighboring country, which is at loggerhead with India over its boundary, inaugurated the 435.5-km Lhasa-Nyingchi section of the Sichuan-Tibet Railway, ahead of the centenary celebrations of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) on July 1.
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As per reports, the first electrified railway in Tibet Autonomous Region was opened on Friday morning, linking Lhasa with Nyingchi as “Fuxing” bullet trains enter official operation on the plateau region, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Sichuan-Tibet Railway will be the second railway into Tibet after the Qinghai-Tibet Railway.
It will go through the southeast of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, one of the world”s most geologically active areas, reports say.
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In November last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping had directed officials to expedite construction of the Sichuan–Nyingchi railway project in Tibet.
He had said that the new rail line would play a key role in safeguarding the border stability.
The Sichuan-Tibet Railway starts from Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, and travels through Ya”an and enters Tibet via Qamdo, shortening the journey from Chengdu to Lhasa from 48 hours to 13 hours.
Nyingchi is prefecture-level city of Medog which is adjacent to the Arunachal Pradesh border.
China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of South Tibet, which is firmly rejected by India.
The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC).