Gansu county recovering from quake

Jishishan to promote spring plowing, livestock farming and employment

Jishishan county in Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture, Gansu province, which was hit hard by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake in December, will promote spring plowing, cattle and sheep feeding, and employment to help economic recovery, said He Dong, head of the prefecture.

"We will restore spring farming infrastructure, ensuring the smooth operation of roads, water channels and water supply facilities, and an adequate supply of agricultural materials such as agricultural film, fertilizers, pesticides and quality seeds," said He, who is also a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress.

It will also organize technical personnel to conduct planting technology training in severely affected areas to ensure the completion of 12,327 hectares of grain sowing and 18,567 hectares of specialty planting areas, he added.

The government is also repairing and reinforcing damaged pens and sheds for affected livestock farms. It will build supporting facilities near each centralized resettlement site, including sunlight greenhouses, steel-frame greenhouses, cattle and sheep breeding centers, standardized breeding communities, forage processing plants and distribution centers.

Further expansion of cattle and sheep breeding and specialty planting is being targeted.

"We hope to see benefits in one year, scale up in two years and make significant improvements in three years, making sure the development of relocated populations is more secure and that the economic development of the county has higher quality," he said.

To promote employment, Linxia provided vocational skills training for 7,919 people during this winter. A total of 29,000 residents who moved to other areas as migrant workers were provided with transportation subsidies. Another 625 temporary earthquake and disaster relief public posts were offered. It also implemented financial support policies to help local companies resume operation, He said.

The earthquake on Dec 18 led to 117 deaths and 784 injuries, with more than 600,000 people affected and direct economic losses of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion), according to official figures.

In 10 days, 14,612 portable houses were built in 233 temporary relocation sites, with daily necessities and government subsidies offered, He said, ensuring that "the people have shelter, warm clothing, bedding, heating stoves, coal, clean drinking water and hot meals".

Housing repair and reconstruction are being accelerated. Fourteen centralized resettlement sites are planned, aiming to relocate 10,800 households. The selection of the centralized resettlement sites has been completed, and construction is scheduled to commence this month, ensuring that people can move into new homes by the end of September, He said.

"All reconstruction projects will be in full swing this spring, ensuring that every household affected by the disaster has a secure place to live, an additional income-generating industry, and can enjoy comfortable and convenient public services," he said.

He added that the production and living conditions in the disaster-affected areas will be improved, and even surpass the pre-disaster level of economic and social development.