22 September 2006
Refurbishment of Potala Palace completed
(Xinhua) Chinese officials in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) have completed a refurbishment programme at the Potala Palace in Lhasa which the State Minority Affairs Commission reports as having cost 53 million Yuan (UK£3.5m; US$6.6m; EUR€5.2m) and used 1,000 kilogram’s of gold. Although the daily entry quota was raised from 1,500 to 2,300 at the end of June, the increase in visitors following the opening of the Golmud-Lhasa railway has led to congestion and long queues to enter the World Heritage Site. In order to relieve this pressure, a visitor’s centre is under construction. The centre, which is due for completion in 2007, will have a lounge and a projection hall screening films about the history of Potala Palace. "Visitors will be able to rest in the 471-sq-m reception centre before they queue to enter the palace", said a spokesman from the cultural relics bureau.