China succeeds in blasting new tunnel across Arunachal to impact Wen-Singh talks
Saibal Dasgupta, TNN, Dec 15, 2010, 07.54pm IST
BEIJING: By a strange coincidence, Chinese engineers have achieved the much awaited feat of blasting open the last of the rocky obstacles to create a long tunnel in the Tibetan county of Motuo across the Arunachal Pradesh border with India on a day when premier Wen Jiabao landed in New Delhi. The feat is bound to influence the border discussions during Wen's visit.
The Chinese government said the tunnel is meant to link the last of the isolated counties with rest of the country to ensure its development. It will also enable easy transportation of men and equipment across long distances to the border in Arunachal, which China claims to be its own.
Indian observers said the new 3.3 kilometer tunnel, which connects a 117-km long highway to Bomi country, provide additional support to Chinese armed forces. The move is bound to aggravate India's worries as Motuo is the point where the Brahmaputra enters India.
The official CCTV television carried reports of celebration with workers dancing and tossing around in the tunnel but did not mention that it was next door to India.
It is also a rare case of a government going to heavy expenditure to connection a population of just 11,000 who live in Motuo county in eastern Tibet. China recently built the fifth civilian airport in Tibet and announced plans for established the world's highest airport at 14,553 feet in the region by 2011. Plans are also afoot for laying six new railway lines in the region.
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