Tibetan railway worker La Youyu never dreamed he would one day take part in pulling the first railway to the roof of the world.

"It is the happiest thing for me to take part in the Qinghai-Tibet railway construction," said La, deputy-director of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway construction headquarters.

As one of the senior project directors, La observed the first rail of the 1,142-meter Qinghai-Tibet Railway be laid down in the Tibet Autonomous Region on June 22.

The 46-year-old was born in a primitive Tibetan village in LeduCounty in Qinghai Province. In the eyes of his fellow villagers, La was very "good-hearted and intelligent". He tied his life with railway after entering the Lanzhou Railway Institute in 1978 and participated in many railway projects after graduation.

When the Qinghai-Tibet Railway broke ground on June 29, 2001, La was among the first batch to be sent to the construction sites for their rich experience on highland railway building.

During the project, La and his fellows are faced with challenges from high altitude, meager oxygen and permanent frozen areas.

They have set many records on highland railway construction, though it may be far beyond laymen's comprehension: they laid nearly eight kilometers of rail and 32-meter bridge in one day on conditions that high altitude above 4,500 meters could easily leadhuman beings to fatigue and want for breath when working.

La is among many Tibetans who have been working to introduce the railway into the snow-covered "third pole of the world", sincethe railway, one symbol of human civilization, came into being nearly two centuries ago.

Over 14,360 Tibetan workers have found positions in the projectand over 82 million yuan (9.88 million US dollars) has been paid to them, according to statistics from the Qinghai-Tibet Railway construction headquarters.

With an investment of 26.21 billion yuan (3.16 billion US dollars), China began the construction project in 2001, hoping therailway between Golmud City of Qinghai Province and Lhasa, capitalof Tibet, can serve as a bridge connecting the autonomous region isolated by its high altitude and severe natural environment to the rest of the country.

The railway will benefit the people in Tibet and Qinghai and make their life much better, said La. "As a Tibetan railway worker,I hope to contribute my pygmy effort to the giant project."

The railway is scheduled to be completed in 2007.

Tibet covers an area of more than 1.2 million square kilometersor about one eighth of Chinese territory. It is the only provincial area in the country without an inch of railway. About 90 percent of the 2.7 million Tibetan people live on farming or raising livestock. Poor traffic conditions have been one of the major obstacles for the modernization of Tibet.

People now travel to Tibet mainly by air or automobiles. In 2003, more than 928,000 tourists visited Tibet.

An native Tibetan, La is good at singing and dancing. "I stood at the lofty hill in the morning, expecting the railway would comenear my hometown one day," La sang a song he and his workers oftenchanted.

From: Xinhua.net