Located at an altitude of 4,300 meters, the average annual temperature is only 0.2 degrees Celsius, and frosts can occur in all months of the year, except for July and August.
Despite the difficult conditions, it took more than 30 years for the mainland to build Shiquanhe Town here, once again demonstrating its determination and strength to make the impossible possible.
How was Shiquanhe Town built? Why spend so much effort on construction?
All statements in this article are based on reliable sources of information and are reproduced in the article
Bushes to trade centers
First of all, although the conclusion is not comprehensive, in addition to economic development and regional construction, part of the reason is to maintain the stability of the Sino-Indian border area, which is only 70 kilometers away from India, and if it is a vehicle motor transport, it can reach India in one or two hours.
The name of Shiquan River Town comes from a river that flows through here, the name of this river is called Shiquan River, and the transliteration in Chinese is Senge Zangbo, which is translated into Chinese as Shiquan River, and it can be seen that the name does not have any special meaning.
The river originates in a glacial lake in Kailash, flows from south to north and finally turns west into India, where the town of Shiquanhe is located in a bushland in the '60s, where the only floating population may be herders grazing pastures.
The basin is surrounded by large areas of red willows and golden pheasants, and there are almost no people in the plateau area for hundreds of miles, and this silence was not broken until the opening of the Xin-Tibet Highway in 1964, and various simple facilities and barracks were built from this time.
In the next year or two, the government offices in Ali area moved from Kunsha Township to Shiquanhe Township, where they worked hard to build infrastructure, mainly because Kunsha Township is located in the Karzangbo River wetland, which is difficult to stabilize and is not conducive to long-term development.
When the city was first built, it had a permanent population of only 400 people, but the city plan was designed for 800 people, which was quite a bold plan at the time.
The town initially had only one well, a shop, a power room and an 84-kilowatt generator, which could not even generate enough electricity for basic lighting.
In the 80s of the 20th century, the pace of construction accelerated, and the scale of the town was initially formed, with the roundabout as the center, four roads extended outward: the south is the commercial street, the east and west are the regional government departments, and the north is the Xin-Tibet Highway, leading to Ritu County and Xinjiang.
If you want to develop, you can develop, and the environment says it's not happy
Winters are cold and long, and the population is growing so that fuel and electricity are scarce, leaving residents to rely on local resources, such as cutting down shrubs such as red willows for heating and even burning plant roots.
The consequences of this practice are obvious: vegetation degradation, frequent sand and dust weather, wind together, sand all over the mouth and nose, eyes can not be opened, half an hour out of the house is covered with dust, the once lush red willow disappears, replaced by wind and sand that seriously affects the lives of residents.
Retired veteran cadres recall this period of history and still deeply regret that this is a mistake made in those years, because in the past, time was tight and tasks were heavy, and they could not take care of the environment, but now environmental problems have come to their door, and they can only bear the consequences of construction.
At the end of the 80s, the control of sandstorms became an important issue; In 1994, the desertification prevention and control project was officially launched, and it was not easy to restore vegetation, and this project has lasted for 26 years.
Today, more than 30,000 acres of planted forests and more than 6,000 acres of artificial grassland will surround Shiquanhe Town, protecting residents, in the future, this project will continue, environmental protection and ecological restoration will not be achieved overnight, but is a long-term maintenance process.
Shiquanhe Town, located at the intersection of Xinzang Highway, Anshi Highway, Hei'a Highway and Ari Highway, is an important distribution center for tourists to travel to Ali area, and on this plateau, population, economy and culture are constantly developing like Shiquanhe.
In addition, tourists going to Xinjiang are reminded that they need to apply for a border permit here.
India, a security security hazard in a border area
China and India have a long history of disagreements over the border, and the two countries have not been able to reach a final consensus for a long time, and even because of the border conflict, India eventually controlled a small part of our land.
The town of Shiquanhe has grown from strength to strength to become one of the most prosperous towns in the Ali region, and its location on the southwestern edge of China is vital to the security of China and India.
It is located in the vast Tibet Autonomous Region, which is known for its land area of 1,202,800 square kilometers, which is one-eighth of China's total area, and has an international border of 3,842 kilometers, and it is extremely important for the country to protect the security and stability of the region.
The Sino-Indian border issue is a complex issue left over from history, with more than 2,000 kilometers of border between the two countries not yet clearly demarcated, and the current border is based on the traditional line and the areas actually controlled by both sides.
The unsuccessful attempt to separate Tibet from China during the British colonial period has had a profound impact on today's border disputes, and then the British tried to occupy Tibetan land again, and after India's independence, the conflict intensified, culminating in a firefight in 1962.
Although we successfully recovered a lot of territory in southern Tibet during the Sino-Indian border conflict, due to the complex terrain and harsh climate in the local area, it was difficult to complete the supply, resulting in some areas being controlled by India after the conflict.
The position of Shiquanhe Town on the Sino-Indian border issue is obvious, the soldiers and horses have not moved the grain and grass first, and the influence of the city located in the border area is far less than that of ordinary supply points.
To put it simply, the troops can rely on the town of Shiquanhe as a supply point, rest here, it is very close to India, supplies can be quickly sent to the soldiers from here, there is a city to protect the border defense, a steady stream of blood transfusion, the importance is self-evident.
On the other hand, if the Indian troops want to come to the border to make trouble, at worst, if there is a conflict, it is impossible for them to defeat our border guards, not to mention that we still have a steady stream of supplies.
India has pursued similar tactics in the southern Tibetan regions it occupies, including mass population relocation, the establishment of settlements, and the promotion of Indian culture in order to tighten its grip on it.
Therefore, China's construction of towns along the Sino-Indian border is not only for economic growth, but also to fulfill its responsibility to protect the border, and these emerging border cities have not only promoted local economic prosperity, but also become an important support for border defense.
In addition to military and security considerations, the development of border towns has also focused on improving the quality of life of residents, and the construction of new residential areas, educational facilities, medical centers, commercial services and cultural activity centers are all key to enhancing the attractiveness of border areas.
As an aside, Shiquanhe Town is the location of the Military Region, and its infrastructure construction is largely based on the model of the Xinjiang Construction Corps.