Qamdo

Qamdo, mountainous area in the far eastern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region, western China. It borders the provinces of Qinghai, Yunnan, and Sichuan to the north, east, and southeast, respectively. Myanmar and the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh lie to the south.

In Qamdo the great fold systems of the Himalayas and the northern Nyainqêntanglha Mountains swing southeast, forming a series of high parallel ranges with a predominantly northwest-to-southeast axis, between which the upper streams of the Salween (Nu Jiang), Mekong (Lancang Jiang), and Jinsha rivers (the latter a tributary of the Yangtze River [Chang Jiang]) flow from northwest to southeast through deep, forested chasms. The Ningjing Mountains, between the Mekong and the Jinsha, have peaks rising to 14,000 feet (4,200 meters). The range to the west of the Salween, the Boshula Mountains, is even higher, with peaks above 20,000 feet (6,100 meters).

Most of the area is uninhabited, and large parts remain virtually unexplored. The city of Qamdo, in the northern section of the region, is a communications hub for eastern Tibet and a gateway providing access to the Chengdu Plain in Sichuan. In the 1950s a highway was built through this northern part from Chengdu (capital of Sichuan) via Qamdo, where it divides into two routes that ultimately reach Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. In addition to highways, the city also has an airport (opened 1995) that provides service to Lhasa and Chengdu. Since the 1970s, several hydropower stations have been constructed around the city area. In addition, some small and medium-sized food-processing and coal-mining operations have been established.

Locally produced specialty medicines—including musk, the bulb of the fritillary (Fritillaria thumbergii), and caterpillar fungus (Ophiocordyceps sinensis, formerly Cordyceps sinensis)—are in great demand throughout China. The caterpillar fungus is the most expensive fungus in the world, fetching as much as $110,000 per kilogram (about $50,000 per pound) for high-quality specimens. It is an important source of cash income for rural people, and conflicts over land rights and access to the fungus have sometimes been violent and even deadly. Pop. (2000) Qamdo city, 30,484.