Nagchu to be TAR’s 6th prefectural-level city

Map not to scale/for illustrative purposes only.

DHARAMSHALA, Sept 7: The process to make Nagchu Prefecture in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) into a prefectural level city will soon be on the floors, according to a Chinese government’s online Tibet news service eng.tibet.cn on Sept 2 published.

If the bureaucratic process for the so called “upgrade” for Nagchu comes through, it will be the sixth prefectural level city in the Tibet Autonomous Region. “The regional government of Tibet announced recently that after the successes of Shigatse, Lhoka, and other areas “change from prefecture to city”, Nagqu (Nagchu) will be the fifth in Tibet to launch the process,” the report stated.

Zhou Yong, an aid-Tibet official from the China’s Academy of Social Sciences and, cited by eng.tibet.cn, mentioned that such up-gradation will mean greater economic growth and urbanization. He said, “Based on the results of the last few areas being changed from district to city, the effects have been remarkable”. The status of prefectural level city also comes with more broad organizational structure with its ability to decide its own regional rules and regulations and more autonomy in policy-making, the official mentioned.

Zhou who is also an Associate Researcher of Tibet’s Academy of Social Sciences said, “There has been rapid economic development in Nagqu (Nagchu)Prefecture in recent years, creating the foundation for the “change from district to city,” and that the initiative was a rudimentary phase in realizing China’s much touted “One Belt and Road” project.

The idea of development and greater economic opportunities that are being sold by authorities fail to mention the strategic influx of Chinese migrants that are pouring into TAR, observers say. Official data puts a number of close to 2,000 – 3,000 Chinese migrating into Tibet each day via the Gormo to Lhasa railway line.

Earlier in May, Lhokha prefecture was granted the prefectural level city status. Similarly Shigatse, Chamdo and Nyingtri had also been provided with the same status. After Nagchu becomes a city, Ngari in western Tibet will be the lone prefectures in the TAR without the status of a city.