Tibetan road maintenance worker witnesses better road conditions

　　BEIJING, Oct. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- Talking about his present life, Pasang, a retired road maintenance worker living in Lhasa, could not keep himself from smiling. "There is a song saying that roads in Tibet are becoming wider and wider. I‘d like to say that our life is becoming more and more prosperous," said the 60-year-old.

　　As an ordinary road maintenance worker on the Sichuan-Tibet Road, Pasang has witnessed the improvement of road conditions in the region in the past five decades.

　　He is from the Duoru Township, Maizhokunggar County, Lhasa. He became a road maintenance worker when he was 20 years old.

　　"In the 1960s, most of the roads were dirt roads. We then had to carry earth to pave the roads," Pasang recalled. At that time, the work was hard and tiring as he and his colleagues were also responsible for removing gravels.

　　Whenever it rained, the road would be waterlogged, making it hard for pedestrians to pass and even harder for vehicles to move. In the windy and dry seasons, the roads were dusty and the air was polluted. "At that time, I earnestly hoped that the dirt roads could be replaced by cement ones, " the retiree said with emotion.

　　When he was 31, cement roads began to appear in Pasang‘s hometown and he began working on the Sichuan-Tibet Road. "The roads in my hometown have improved and the whole of the Sichuan-Tibet Road has become an asphalt highway, with the result that road maintenance has become much easier," he said.

　　With better roads, locals‘ living standard has also improved and Pasang‘s salary also risen year by year. "The livelihood of my family has improved a lot. I have three children and my eldest daughter is studying at a university now," he said happily. His family later bought an apartment in Lhasa.

　　Pashang and his wife moved to Lhasa after he retired in 1993. "We planned to spend our late years in our new home, " he said. Pasang‘s monthly pension has risen from 1,200 yuan (175.8 U.S. dollars) to 3,200 yuan.

　　"As all my children have jobs, my wife and I don‘t need to worry about our living expenses. We are feeling very happy now," he said.