Ignoring criticism of its ecological consequences, China is going ahead with the construction of the world¨s highest railway line linking Tibet with the mainland. Debunking the apprehensions that it might disturb the ecology of the region, an official of the Tibetan Autonomous Region said that enough care has been taken to protect the environment.

The work going on full swing on the 1,100-km railway line linking Golmud city of Qinghai province with the Tibetan capital of Lhasa. An official said the railway line is expected to start operation in 2006.

Around two months back, the first track touched Tibet when two 25-metre-long rails were inaugurated at the Amdo station, around 450 km north of Lhasa. It is the first line to reach the plateau.

The TAR official said the Chinese government has allocated 16 billion Yuan for the preservation of ecology in the region so that it does not get affected by the construction of the railway line. Out of his money, he claimed 1.2 billion Yuan has already been spent and it would soon be increased to two billion.

He said that just to protect environment around 100-km stretch of the line will be on bridges even if it means that the cost will escalate by 2.5 times. Even in those areas where the precious grasslands will have to be destroyed due to the construction work, it will be restored after the completion of construction, the official said.

But it will not be easy to build the railway line whose average altitude will be more than 5,000 metres. Moreover, the Tibet plateau also has an active geology.

　　　　　　　　　
　　　　　　Celebration held for the rail laying project of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

The Chinese government is spending $3.16 billion on the project to link the autonomous region, which is separated by high mountains and difficult geographical features. At the moment, Lhasa is accessible through road and air and the cost of traveling is very high.

The Chinese government is also discounting apprehension that the railway line will destroy some of the precious Buddhist shrines, including the Namco Lake and Mt. Kailash. They said the construction route has been altered to save these areas. The officials said that even the trucks that are being used for construction follow a particular route designed in way that they do not affect the ecology.