China plans tourist hub close to Arunachal

China plans tourist hub close to disputed areas near Arunachal Pradesh border

by Saibal DasguptaSaibal Dasgupta, TNN | Jun 24, 2012,

BEIJING: China is building a "golden" tourist complex in Nyingchi prefecture in Tibet, close to the disputed areas on the India-China border in Ar.

The move is bound to affect the border talks between India and China because Beijing claims that Arunachal Pradesh is part of Nyingchi prefecture.

Beijing's plans may involve attracting well-off Han Chinese from mainland China to settle in the border region to strengthen its claims over parts of Arunachal Pradesh, sources said.

The announcement comes within a day of a meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese premier Wen Jiabao on the sidelines of the Rio+20 summit in Brazil.

South China's Guangdong province will invest 400 million yuan ($63.5 million), apparently on the orders of the central government in Beijing. An additional investment of two billion yuan ($317 million) is expected to flow into Nyingchi from different enterprises once it develops as a tourist destination, Guangdong officials said.

Nyingchi can be a "potential golden tourism resource" because of its abundant virgin forests, snow mountains, rivers and pastures, according to a Guangdong official. The central government has assigned the relatively prosperous Guangdong the role of Tibet's partner province.

Beijing's plans may involve attracting well-off Han Chinese from mainland China to settle in the border region to strengthen its claims over parts of Arunachal Pradesh, sources said.