Infrastructure, including road and rail links, on the Chinese side of the border has always been far more developed than the Indian side. Given that India and China are still embroiled in a long-standing border dispute, China’s endeavors to improve its side of infrastructure along the border have emerged as a major cause of concern for India’s political and military leadership. On August 15, 2014, India’s Independence Day, China formally inaugurated its
253-kilometer second railway line with 13 stations in Tibet.
The railway line is an extension of Qinghai-Tibet railway line to Shigatse which cost US$2.16 billion to build. Shigatse is the second-largest city in Tibet after Lhasa. Its significance also lies in it having been the traditional seat of the Panchem Lama. Considering the terrain in the area, the extension of Golmud-Lhasa railway line proved to be the most expensive railway line built in China. [Source]
