Himalayan Times (1957)

Six

July 7, 1967

THE PEOPLE'S NEW TIBET UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Now atmosphere per-
meates everywhere id Ti
bet after liberation. The
Tibetap people are enga-
ging themselves in ■pro-
ductive labour with fu.l
confidence; joyfull songs
•re heard all over the
villages and pastures.

The broad Tibet pea-
sant masses received help
in different respects from
the' People's Government,
such as gratis loans, im-
provements in farming
technique, popularisation
of new farming implements
etc. Thus the people's
enthusiasm in production
was stimulated, agricul-
tural output highly increa-
sed and livelihood is being
steadily improved.

The State-owned Tibet
Trading Company purcha.
led wool in large amount
at fair and resonable prices
thus protecting the inter-
ests of the I ibetan herds-
men. Veterinary training
clauses and itinerant vete-
rinarian teams have been
organized for the preven-
tion and treatment of
animal pests. As a result,
the Tibetan herdsmen no
longer See away with their
oattle and sheep from the
calamity caused by ani-
mal pests as they did
before liberation. As life
being stable now, herds

men are engaged in large-
scale subsidiary produc-
tions. They dig up salt
and alkalies from salt
lakes and load them on
hundreds of animal backs
and transport them out
for sale.

Before liberation tea
planting was forbidden in
Tibet. Then the State-
owned Tibet Trading Com
pany supplied the Tibetan
people with brick tea in
large quantity which thou-
sands of ysks transported
from Sikang to Lhapa and
other places in Tibet.
Thus tea price has been
reduced by more than
20% as compared with
that btfore liberation and
the burden of the Tibetan
people is greatly lightened.
Since 1951, the Sikang
Provincial People'* Govern
men* ha« distributed large
amount of tea seeds in
the Tibetan Autonomous
Kegion for trial plantation
in Yakiang, Taofu, Tanpa
and other oounties. In
the two years since then,
the results have been sa
tisfactory Thus part of
the brick-tea the Tibetan
people need can be pro-
duced by themselves. When
the planting area is ex-
panded one can drink tea
at a oheaper price.

In the past on the

Yalutsangpo and its tribu-
taries the Nyangchu and
the East Rivers whioh run
through the Shigatse re-
gion, there were no water
cunaervency works thus
flood oame in every rainy
season and villages and
farms alorg the rivers
were often iDundated. In
1954, with the fund granted
by the Central People's
Government, six water
oonservancy works were
constructed and more than'
ten thousand mou of Isnd
were protected fn m the
.dinger of irundsticn. The
dykes alorg the Nyang
near Snipalse are being
strengthened, and a ther-
mo-electric pewer etafon
is being built in ShigaUe
itself. Lhasa, too, is soon
starting on a hydroelec-
tric power station and a
vehicle repair shop, blue
prints have been drawn
up for a tannery and an
iron plant; and the expe-
rimented farm near the
city is being rapidly en
Urged. In the construc-
tion of these projeots, the
People'* Liberation Army
rendered enormous assist
ance and veteran direotion
aii't the 'ibetan people
enthusiasticslly joined the
work and made great
contributions to the con-
quering of. flood and the
development of production.