Border township thrives thanks to advancements

When Pasang Tsering took a teaching job at the school in Yulmed, Xizang autonomous region, in 2007, many people warned him that the living conditions in the township in the southern foothills of the Himalayas were very tough.

- By CUI JIA

However, he was still surprised by the reality of everyday life in what was said to be the least-populated township in China.

“Surrounded by mountains on three sides at an average altitude of more than 5,000 metres, it took me about four days to get to the township from the county seat of Lhunze because of the poor road,” Pasang Tsering said. “I had to traverse steep slopes and rugged paths on foot to get to Yulmed.”

With an unstable electricity supply from a small hydropower station, even watching TV was a luxury then. In Yulmed, in the remote area near the China-India border, communication with the outside world was often cut off, he said.

Things are a lot different now. A three-person township decades ago is now home to more than 200 people and oversees two villages. Pasang Tsering has become the Party chief of one village, also called Yulmed.

With improved infrastructure, such as roads and telecommunications, the locals can access the latest information via social media and have online orders delivered to their doorstep, just like people in China's big cities, Pasang Tsering said.

“If a place like Yulmed can thrive so much in less than 20 years, the development of Xizang as a whole is even more extraordinary.”

People have to get through two mountain passes at an altitude above 5,000 metres to reach Yulmed from Lhunze, Shannan city. Apart from the stunning view of the snow-capped mountains and grand valleys, the 10-kilovolt power transmission line extended by the State Grid to Yulmed in 2019 along the well-paved road is also hard to miss.