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Liu Yu owns a small grocery store in a residential neighborhood in Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province.
With a modest income, the farmer from Pixian, a county under Chengdu's administration, once worried about how to pay for his son's schooling.
"Farmers without a city hukou (permanent residency) have to pay a considerable sum of extra money if their children want to enter a city school," he said.
But a proposed plan by the Chengdu government should ease his concerns, as it will make it possible for his 4-year-old son to enter a primary school in the city in 2012, without any additional charge.
On Tuesday, the Chengdu government released a working plan on the free migration of its residents between urban and rural areas starting 2012.
China adopted the hukou system in 1958, which stopped people flowing freely between the city and countryside. However, the system resulted in an unbalanced social security for urban and rural residents.
Chengdu is a pilot city for hukou reform. Since it began to reform in 2003, more than 2 million people have acquired permanent residency in Chengdu.
But the latest plan is a milestone, according to Qin Daihong, deputy chief of the city's working committee on urban and rural development.
According to the plan, people in Chengdu will be able to register as either urban or rural residents based on their residences, and they can freely change their registration once they move.
"Farmers can register as urban residents, even though they have land and houses in the countryside, while urban residents can register as rural residents with proof of residences in the countryside and then rent a piece of land to grow their favorite vegetables," Qin said.
Once implemented, the plan will make it possible for more than 5 million rural residents in Chengdu to enjoy the same social security and public services, such as education and healthcare, as their urban counterparts, he added.
"The new plan is the first in the country to break down the long-term barrier hindering the free movement of residents, the first to let farmers enter the city without losing their land, and the first to eliminate inequality in education and healthcare between urban and rural residents," Qin said.
The plan has drawn a positive response from local farmers in Chengdu.
Xue Chao, 58, a farmer from Dayi, another county under Chengdu's administration, said the plan shows respect for rural residents.
"As rural residents cannot move freely to the city, where there is better education and healthcare, they're considered inferior," said Xue, who works as a security guard in a museum in Chengdu.
But many urban residents in Chengdu fear the plan may result in a major influx of rural residents into the city, putting increasing strain on its infrastructure.
More new immigrants will put greater pressure on the city's public facilities and housing and cause more traffic jams, said Wei Guang, a sociologist with the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences.
In response, Qin said the Chengdu government is considering constructing more public facilities to cater to the expected influx of rural residents.
Source:China Daily
With a modest income, the farmer from Pixian, a county under Chengdu's administration, once worried about how to pay for his son's schooling.
"Farmers without a city hukou (permanent residency) have to pay a considerable sum of extra money if their children want to enter a city school," he said.
But a proposed plan by the Chengdu government should ease his concerns, as it will make it possible for his 4-year-old son to enter a primary school in the city in 2012, without any additional charge.
On Tuesday, the Chengdu government released a working plan on the free migration of its residents between urban and rural areas starting 2012.
China adopted the hukou system in 1958, which stopped people flowing freely between the city and countryside. However, the system resulted in an unbalanced social security for urban and rural residents.
Chengdu is a pilot city for hukou reform. Since it began to reform in 2003, more than 2 million people have acquired permanent residency in Chengdu.
But the latest plan is a milestone, according to Qin Daihong, deputy chief of the city's working committee on urban and rural development.
According to the plan, people in Chengdu will be able to register as either urban or rural residents based on their residences, and they can freely change their registration once they move.
"Farmers can register as urban residents, even though they have land and houses in the countryside, while urban residents can register as rural residents with proof of residences in the countryside and then rent a piece of land to grow their favorite vegetables," Qin said.
Once implemented, the plan will make it possible for more than 5 million rural residents in Chengdu to enjoy the same social security and public services, such as education and healthcare, as their urban counterparts, he added.
"The new plan is the first in the country to break down the long-term barrier hindering the free movement of residents, the first to let farmers enter the city without losing their land, and the first to eliminate inequality in education and healthcare between urban and rural residents," Qin said.
The plan has drawn a positive response from local farmers in Chengdu.
Xue Chao, 58, a farmer from Dayi, another county under Chengdu's administration, said the plan shows respect for rural residents.
"As rural residents cannot move freely to the city, where there is better education and healthcare, they're considered inferior," said Xue, who works as a security guard in a museum in Chengdu.
But many urban residents in Chengdu fear the plan may result in a major influx of rural residents into the city, putting increasing strain on its infrastructure.
More new immigrants will put greater pressure on the city's public facilities and housing and cause more traffic jams, said Wei Guang, a sociologist with the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences.
In response, Qin said the Chengdu government is considering constructing more public facilities to cater to the expected influx of rural residents.
Source:China Daily
