A Chinese company has developed a locomotive to fit the tough and specific requirements for a controversial, high-altitude railway to Tibet.
Since the 1,142-kilometer (713-mile) railway to the Tibetan capital of Lhasa will pass through freezing mountain areas, the locomotive incorporates special cold-resistant materials, Xinhua news agency said.
The train, developed by Nanche Sifang Locomotive Co. in eastern Qingdao city, is also supplied with a special system to provide enough oxygen for the passengers, according to the agency.
A special clinic will treat altitude sickness — an ailment that reportedly afflicted China’s new leader Hu Jintao when he was Communist Party boss in Tibet more than a decade ago.
To protect the fragile ecology of the area, the diesel-driven train is equipped with a closed sewage and waste treatment system, Xinhua said.
The line, which will eventually link Lhasa with the city of Golmud in neighboring Qinghai province, is set to become the world’s longest high-altitude railway.
The fact that the locomotive was developed in eastern China would seem at odds with one of the key objectives of the 3.2-billion-dollar railway, which is to help promote economic growth in China’s less-developed west.
Rights advocates have condemned the project, saying it is part of an effort to encourage Han Chinese migrants to settle in Tibet and dilute the local population, firming Beijing’s control over the region.
The railway and the expected influx of Han Chinese would make Tibetans second-class citizens in their own land, human rights groups have said.
Another 1,600-kilometer (1,000-mile) rail line between Lhasa and Kunming city, southwestern Yunnan province, is already on the drawing board and is expected to cost 7.6 billion dollars.
