Chinese President Inspects Anti-Desertification Work in Ningxia
Text of report by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency)
[Report by Xinhua reporter Sun Chengbin: "'Wish Fellow Villagers To Become Prosperous As Soon As Possible' - Sidelights on Gengeral Secretary Hu Jintao's Inspecting Sand-Prevention and Sand-Control Work in Ningxia's Arid Region"]
Yinchuan, 14 Apr (Xinhua) -The whole year’s work depends on a good start in spring. Despite floating dust and flying sand, many villagers are still working hard and busily on the vast arid land of Yongkang Town, Zhongwei City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.
In the afternoon of 11 April, Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CCP Central Committee, state president, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, who was inspecting work in Ningxia, and Wang Gang, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee, member of the Secretariat of the CCP Central Committee, and chairman of the General Office of the CCP Central Committee, who was accompanying Hu Jintao in the inspection tour, arrived here to inspect the work of preventing and controlling sand in an arid area.
Dry weather and scanty rainfall, the havoc wreaked by deserts, and the fragile ecology have brought about serious difficulties to the life and production of the people in many areas of Ningxi. Because he was worrying about the people in arid regions, during the inspection tour, Hu Jintao braved windstorms, crossed deserts, and mounted sand dunes many times to discuss a development plan with local cadres and people.
Zhongwei City is located in the central arid zone of Ningxia. Here the annual average rainfall is only more than 180 mm, but the annual evaporation volume is as high as more than 1,900 mm. On this tract of land where the conditions are very harsh, the cadres and people of all nationalities have created a unique model of dry farming agriculture after working hard for many years: after covering the sandy soil with a layer of grit stones, plant drought- resistant jujube threes and watermelons. This not only can reduce the quantity of evaporation, preserve soil moisture, and reduce flying sand but also can yield better economic returns and ecological results. At present, the area covered with a layer of grit stones in 18 townships and towns in Zhongwei City has reached more than 720,000 mu, and the number of farming households directly engaged in growing watermelons by covering the sandy soil with a layer of grit stones first has reached more than 14,000. In 2006, the per capita income of the households in the city’s arid belt coming from growing watermelons amounted to more than 13,000 yuan. The masses of people on the sandy soil have found a road of survival, a road of development, and a road of hope by relying on their own hard work and wisdom.
Ma Jianhua, secretary of the Yongkang Town party committee, told the general secretary: Starting from 2006, the town began a large- scale project to cover the land with a layer of grit stones. It was able to cover more than 12,000 mu of land with a layer of grit stones in the same year. This year the town has covered more than 4,600 mu of sandy land with a layer of grit stone. Growing watermelons this way has become a new economic growth outlet of Yongkang Town.
A gust of wind has whipped up fine sand and blown past the fields….
While listening to a briefing by a local cadre and looking at the villagers who were rush-planting jujube trees and watermelon seeds, Hu Jintao walked in big strides towards them.
Seeing that the premier was walking towards them, the villagers very excited. Hu Jintao shook hands with the fellow villagers one by one and had a cordial conversation with them. Afterwards, the general secretary took up a shovel to put some more soil on a jujube tree, which was standing straight in the land covered with grit stones.
Seeing that a group of women was planting watermelon seeds on the land covered with grit stones, Hu Jintao walked closer to them to inspect in detail this special planting method.
“How much money can this mu of watermelons yield?” asked the general secretary.
“By average, a mu of watermelons can yield about 500 yuan,” answered a local cadre. When the construction to build a base covered with grit stones in Yongkang Town is completed and when the base is fully planted with watermelons, the town is expected to product 35,000 metric tons of watermelons a year, and the per capital income of the peasants of the town is expected to increase by more than 960 yuan.
A smile emerged from the face of the general secretary. Afterwards, he took up a small spade, bent down, dug a small hole in the land, then used a pair of chopsticks to clip up a budding watermelon seed and place it in the hole, carefully added some soil to it, and then covered it with a plastic sheet to retain moisture and temperature.
“Have your family also engaged in building new land with grit stones?” After planting a few watermelon seeds, Hu Jintao stood up and then chatted about homely things with the villagers near him.
“Yes I did. I have built 140 mu!” answered villager Sun Yongan.
How much per jin do you sell your watermelons? What about the sale market? What was your income last year? ….
Standing in the big wind and counting with his fingers, Hu Jintao asked questions one by one. Sun Yongan told the general secretary that the watermelons here are of good strain, they sell well, and last year their family income from growing watermelons was more than 30,000 yuan.
“How much is the cost to have one mu of land covered with a layer of grit stones? The general secretary asked afterwards.
“Generally, it costs 500 yuan to 700 yuan.”
“Can you solve the problem of funds?” The general secretary asked with concern.
“The government gives us a subsidy of 120 yuan per mu. We can borrow some from the Agricultural Bank and credit cooperatives. We will think of a way to raise some money ourselves. It is not a big problem!”
Nodding his head, Hu Jintao again asked: “Has the policy of agricultural tax exemption been carried out?”
“It has been carried out. After tax exemption, the authority issued us peasants a small book also called a card, ” answered Sun Yongan.
“What items are shown in the card?”
“For example, subsidies for the land covered with grit stones. How much subsidies have been given to you. Once you check the card, everything can be printed out. With this small book, we can go to a credit cooperative to withdraw money.”
Hu Jintao further asked: “Have you joined the rural cooperative medical care insurance? What is the standard price?”
“I have joined. Our government here pays 40 yuan, and the masses pay 10 yuan. Eight yuan of this 10 yuan is like depositing in a bank. If you do not get sick in a whole year, the money will be returned to you at the end of the year.”
Gusts of wind with sand were blowing past, but Hu Jintao was still having cordial talks with the fellow villagers. The general secretary was very happy to see that although the natural conditions here were very harsh, yet under the leadership of the party and the government, the living standard of the peasants here had gradually improved as a result of their own hard work.
“Do you feel you still have difficulties in your living standard? Asked Hu Jintao.
“As for difficulties, I think our area here is very dry. We are still short of mechanized wells and water cellars. In a drought condition, it is really impossible for some areas to grow anything….” Sun Yongan said honestly.
“On what does your drinking water for people and livestock depend at your house?” Hu Jintao further asked.
“We depend on water drawn from a mountain valley. We also have water cellars, but the number of water cellars is small.”
“How deep can you find water when you dig a mechanized well? What about the quality of the water?”
“We can find water at about 100 metres deep. The quality of the water is so so.”
After listening to Sun Yongan’s answers, Hu Jintao said to Chen Jianguo, secretary of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Regional party committee, and Ma Qizhi, chairman of the autonomous region, who were accompanying him that they must decide to use the method of digging mechanized wells to solve the problem of drinking water for the people if the conditions for digging mechanized wells permit and if the quality of the water can satisfy the demand for drinking water by people and livestock. If the conditions for digging mechanized wells do not permit, or if the quality of the water fails to meet the requirement of drinking by people and livestock, they should adopt other effective measures to solve the problem of drinking water for the people.
Hu Jintao said to the villagers: “The party and the government will try every means to help fellow villagers solve the problem of drinking water for people and livestock and to support you to increase production and income on arid land.”
The time to part has come. A few villagers came out from an underground cellar with watermelons harvested last year and warmly asked the general secretary to taste them.
Hu Jintao held up a watermelon, weighed it in the hand, and said to the fellow villagers with a smile: Your standard of living has become good. It made me happier than your giving me a watermelon. This watermelon must be eaten today. I am waiting to hear your good news!
“Wish fellow villagers to become prosperous as soon as possible!” Hu Jintao said loudly while waving to the fellow villagers to bid farewell.
The newly planted jujube trees were standing in rows in an orderly manner, and the fields are now decorated with new green threes. The spring of vitality is arriving in big strides….
(c) 2007 BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.