The China Mobile's Tibetan branch office recently launched its
mobile service in the smallest village in China. The village,
called Yumai in Lhunze County, has only 7 households with
altogether 27 people. With the launching, the dream for local
villagers to enjoy mobile service has finally come true, the
People's Posts and Telecommunications
News reported.
Yumai village is located in the northern slope of the Himalayas.
Due to its complicated geographical features, transportation there
is underdeveloped. Every year, the village will be blocked from the
rest of the places in Tibet by heavy snowstorms. Ten years ago,
there was only one household living in this village. The household
contained three people, with the father Sang Qu Ba being the
village Party Secretary, his elder daughter Zhuo Ga being the
village governor and his youngest daughter Zong Yang being the only
villager. The only one family lived in a village situated in the
Sino-Indian border. The village is as large as the national
territory of Mauritius. However, with only three people living
there, it becomes a village that has the smallest population in
China.
In recent years, the central and local governments have devoted
great efforts to improving the transportation facilities and living
conditions of Yumai Village. As a result, more people came to
settle there, most of them from nearby villages. As more people
came to live in the village, they hoped that one day, they could
also enjoy telecommunication services just like people in other
parts of China.
Setting up a telecommunication station in a sparsely-populated
area can not generate much profit. However, the China Mobile's
Tibetan branch office has made it a corporate goal that their
telecommunication network will cover every part of Tibet, including
the most isolated areas. Bearing this in mind, the company has
overcome tremendous difficulties and finally managed to open the
telecommunication service in the smallest village in China.
(Chinanews, December 7, 2007)