A glance at Lhasa.

Tibetlies at high altitude and the air is thin, with oxygen content only one-third of sea level. When I recently went to Tibet and disembarked from the plane in Lhasa, I was enchanted by the beauty of the landscape. Walking fast to leave the airport, however, I was soon gasping for breath. This made me realize why Tibetan women walk at such a leisurely pace.

Such a harsh environment exerts a special impact on the economic life of the Tibetans.

I. Economic Tradition

The Tibetan economic mode has a long history in terms of farming, animal husbandry and a handicraft industry steeped in tradition.

Age-Old Mode of Farming and Animal Husbandry

Karub Ruins, discovered in 1977 beside the Langcangjiang River in Qamdo County shows that early inhabitants of the Tibetan plateau began to settle there to carry on farming and animal husbandry some 4,000 years ago.

Farming in Tibet is divided into two parts: Highland and low-altitude farming. Qingke barley, wheat, peas, sweet potatoes, buck wheat and rape are the major crops of highland farming, being resistant to dry, cold conditions. Major crops in the areas at low-altitude include rice, maize, chicken feet cereals, and various kinds of vegetables.

Relying on oxen to plough, a traditional cultivation method, continued until the mid-20^th century, and some people in remote villages continue to farm in this way. After the 1980s, farm machinery such as walking tractors replaced traditional beasts and manpower. This, coupled with use of chemical fertilizers, fine seed varieties of seeds and efficient irrigation, along with the adoption of new cultivation methods, led to the emergence of modern farming. By 1997, the power of farm machinery used in Tibet added up to 774,500 KW; electricity consumed in the rural areas added up to 19.29 million k Wh; a total of 24,400 tons of chemical fertilizers was being used each year; the acreage of farmland being irrigated reached 156,740 hectares. All these figures show that farming and animal husbandry in Tibet have witnessed an improved infrastructure. Tibet has enjoyed bumper harvests for 14 consecutive years since 1988, with grain production hitting some 790,000 tons in 1997, some 850,000 tons in 1998, and 982,500 tons in 2001. this latter figure represents a 550 percent increase on the output recorded in 1959. in 2002, the acreage of farmland ploughed, sown and harvested using farm machinery reached 116,000 hectares, 146,000 hectares and 84,000 hectares respectively. This laid a sound foundation for further development in future.

In 2001, Tibet won the 14^th bumper harvest, with the grain production reaching a new record high of 982,500 tons, or 5.5 times that of 1959.

As one of the five major pasturelands in China, Tibet boasts 80 million hectares of grasslands. Animal husbandry continues to hold an important position in Tibetan economic life.

In the 1950s, the output value of animal husbandry made up two-thirds of the total farming output, and remained ahead until 1994, when it was finally overtaken by agricultural output.

Paddy fields in Zayu.

A shot of Northern Tibet Grasslands.

Wandering around in pursuit of water and grass constitutes the basic form of traditional animal husbandry in Tibet. With the passage of time, the composition of the herds of domestic animals has changed from being mainly comprised of yaks to sheep. In areas at lower altitude, buffaloes and pien niu (offspring of a bull and a female yak) are comparatively numerous. That livestock breeding in Tibet still retains many of its traditional ways has something to do with the salient features of animal husbandry in the Tibetan grasslands. Other factors include separation and closeness.