Bianba Ciren, 31, expects the new rail link will help boost his production of hadas -- white scarves symbolizing respect and blessings in Tibet -- by more than 60 percent.

    Hadas are a must for Tibetans at religious rituals and on all other important occasions, and usually comprise a proportion of silk in the cloth. Yet this token of culture has only recently been made in Tibet, where the cold, arid highland climate makes silk production impossible.

    When Bianba Ciren set up a company to produce Tibetan commodities in his hometown of Xigaze last year, he was hoping the new rail link would become a "hada highway".

    His company has since been producing 100,000 hadas a month, most of which are sold in Xigaze, southern Tibet.

    The most popular hadas are made of silk and artificial fabrics or hemp, and sell for between 0.5 and two yuan each (six to 25 U.S. cents).

    Once the railway begins operation and bulk production starts, Bianba Ciren and his colleagues expect to be producing more than two million annually and making up to 500,000 yuan (62,500 U.S. dollars) net profit a year, he says.

    "Hopefully, our hada brand 'Zhaxi Pagba' will take the lion's share of the market in Lhasa and across Tibet," he says.

    In the Tibetan language, Zhaxi stands for "auspicious" and Pagba "booming trade".