Local road

Situated in the valleys of the middle reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo, Xizang's most famous river, Rinpung is known as the "east gate" of Shigatse. With an average elevation of over 3,950 meters above sea level, Rinpung is mountainous and riddled with deep gullies.

When CREC4 builders arrived, they realized that the local population faced many difficulties in their daily travels.

Rinpung administers nine townships, with 366 natural villages organized into 72 administrative villages and one neighborhood committee.

In addition to building the expressway, CREC4 staffers decided to offer a helping hand by setting up an assistance team, of which Xu Keming is the head.

Xu said: "A good local road can serve as a transport artery linking the rural Tibetan fields and the urban market. Once built, the local rural resources can be revitalized."

Based mainly on agriculture, the local people produce highland barley, wheat, rapeseed, peas and potatoes, as well as rear cattle and sheep.

Rinpung's rich mineral resources include ferrochrome, lead, zinc, marble and jade.

With help from the assistance team, CREC4 Second Engineering only took six months to renovate 36.9 km of existing roads and 12.6 km of permanent roads, breaking the bottleneck facing the Tibetan farmers and herdsmen along these roads.

Techniques, jobs

Rinpung has a population of some 38,800, including over 35,600 Tibetans, but the local residents mainly rely on agricultural produce for income. They need industrial support and tourism to boost their incomes.

Xu said aiding in skill development and jobs is the best solution to help in the development of local residents.

As technical training can lead to decent jobs, the assistance team organized CREC4 staffers in conducting "skills training" and "pre-job training" sessions through the mode of "a teacher helping an apprentice".

The skills mainly covered steel bar binding and electric welding.

Tenzin Dondrup is a fervent attendee at the training sessions. After breakfast, he immediately rushes to the training room.

"Today, we are going to have classes on electric welding. I need to have a good seat for a clearer view," he said, adding, "I'm to apply for an electrician's certificate to prepare for my job."

So far, more than 140 training sessions have been launched, drawing over 2,400 attendees.

After the training, the assistance team picked the local people to work as CREC4 builders based on their acquired skills and educational levels.

So far, CREC4 Second Engineering has hired more than 400 Tibetan farmers and herdsmen, and leased more than 300 sets of local machinery and equipment, helping them garner a total income of more than 20 million yuan.

Children's education

CREC4 builders wouldn't let the Tibetan children down without proper support.

For CREC4 builders, extending a helping hand to needy students in Rinpung ensured educational equality and social fairness.

The assistance team visited the Rinpung County Education Bureau, the Chewa township and the Lhain township and their surrounding villages, and launched an aid-the-kids drive.

Some 20 CREC4 staffers decided to offer each primary school student 600 yuan per semester and each middle school student 1,000 yuan per semester for their studies.

"I will definitely cherish this aid fund and use it for my own study," said Lhadron, who is studying in the third grade at Rinpung County Middle School.

Contact the writers at zhuangqiange@chinadaily.com.cn