Lhasa’s railway cargo depot lies at the end of a partly paved road, full of potholes, around 20km outside the Tibetan capital.

Scurrying to and fro along its platforms, uniformed workers unload everything from construction materials to incense. When a railway line linking Tibet to China opened last year, there were fears it could lead to the erosion of Tibet’s unique culture and way of life. Officials, meanwhile, are keen to stress its achievements.

Those benefits are not hard to find. Renchin, a cleaner, is just one person whose life has improved with the railway’s arrival. The 28-year-old Tibetan works 12 hours a day, six days a week mopping the floor at the railway’s passenger terminal on the outskirts of Lhasa. Before the railway opened last July, she worked at a karaoke bar earning far less than the $119 she now takes home each month.

Businesses, as well as individuals, have also benefited. Along the road leading to the cargo station, a giant gateway tells visitors they have arrived at Lhasa’s economic development zone.

At the moment there is not much to see. Beyond the impressive entrance, a wide boulevard leads to vacant parcels of land.

But the zone’s director, Huang Yutian, is optimistic. He said 112 businesses from as far away as Beijing and Guangzhou had already signed up to use the park. These will be involved in industries such as mining, and processing Tibetan wool and dairy products.

Predictably, tourism has also been given a boost by the railway’s arrival to a region with wonderful natural scenery, and colourful temples and monasteries. Previously, Lhasa could be reached only by plane or after a long, arduous road journey.

At central Lhasa’s Jokhang Temple, one of Tibetan Buddhism’s most revered sites, there are now at least twice as many visitors as before. There are so many tourists at the 1,300-year-old temple — pilgrim numbers are about the same — site officials are considering setting limits.

Economic growth was up by 14.7 per cent in the first half of this year in the Himalayan region. But if the railway has brought benefits, critics say they have not been evenly distributed. China’s dominant Han people who move to Tibet to find work, they claim, have taken all the good jobs.

That seems to be at least partly the case at the Hada Group, a Tibetan-run firm in Lhasa making traditional furniture and ironware. Group Chairman Qun Pei said more than 90 per cent of the company’s 500 workers are ethnic Tibetans.

But he later admitted the firm had taken on 1,200 temporary workers from other parts of the country this year because it could not find enough Tibetans with the right skills. Government officials admit there is a skill gap and say money has been put aside to train unqualified Tibetans.

The year-old railway is certainly changing Tibet. It is bringing easier access to fresh vegetables, but also more tourists and migrants. For some these changes are welcome and will provide opportunities. Others view them in a less benign light.

BBC News