The Beijing authority is taking more steps to help local farmers
recover from the impact of the recent severe acute respiratory
syndrome (SARS) outbreak.
The municipal government announced Monday it will give out a total
of 8 million RMB yuan (966,180 US dollars) in special subsidies to
local farmers, who have suffered diminished incomes due to SARS,
reports Tuesday's China Daily.
Wang Yongfu, a middle-aged farmer planting peaches in eastern
Beijing's Pinggu County, said he was in need of special
governmentsupport. He is anxious about selling all his peaches
which are overstocked due to transport being restricted during the
SARS outbreak.
However, Wang might not get the subsidy he wants, because the
limited amount of money would only go to those evaluated by local
officials as "the most needy", said Zhang Xiaolan, a leading
official at the rural work committee of the Beijing Party
Committee.
Therefore, the essential way to get the greatest number of local
farmers out of the hardship is to create more channels to raise
incomes, said Zhang.
Now the committee has launched a new project to develop folk
tourism in Beijing rural areas.
(Xinhua News Agency July 1, 2003)
