Ten measures to improve residents' lives and livelihoods in 2018

The Second Session of the 16th Wuxi Municipal People's Congress was held at the municipal hall of Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu province on Jan 7, 2018.

The government report delivered by Wang Quan, the city's mayor, outlined the targets of sustained quality growth set by the local government to ensure 2018 is an abundant and prosperous year for the city.

Anyone questioning the future impact and relevancy of the two sessions recently held by the CPPCC Wuxi committee and the Wuxi People's Congress should shed their doubts and rest assured that active measures are being taken to address the quality of residential life.

In terms of improving the lives of Wuxi citizens, the local government has announced ten measures that will be implemented over the coming year. They are listed below.

Left: The Gujiadu River in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, was nearly blocked by mud during dredging in August last year. Right: The river in October after the dredging. It has become a place of leisure for nearby residents. [Photo/XINHUA]

1. Water regulation

Carry out 150 key renovation projects on 24 polluted rivers contaminated by volatile organic compounds, including the Xixin River and the Meidong River.

2. Poverty alleviation and Social welfare support

Ensure the average annual per capita income of households receiving subsistence allowances exceeds 10,000 yuan ($1500). Help 26 economically weak villages out of poverty. Apply commercial general liability policies to 1,100 home care service organizations. Help at least 30 impoverished villages increase their annual revenue beyond 2 million yuan ($290,000). Build 135 government-run charities which serve disabled adults.

3. Road construction

Complete the transformation of rapid West Jianghai Road and Lihu Road. Launch the construction of rapid Fengxiang Road, Pinghu Road (from Qingyuan Road to Juqu Road), Yugang Road, Xinhui Road, Huifeng Road and East Yunhe Road.

4. Public transportation

Open a further 10 bus lines and add 150 clean energy buses. Launch 500 comprehensive self-service terminals for citizen cards. Build a cloud service platform for Wuxi Metro.

A hundred of clean energy buses has been put into use in the past year. [Photo/wxrb.com]

5. Upgrade infrastructure

Complete the replacement of 50 kilometers of old water pipes. Refit 3,000 residency water meters and add 50,000 natural gas residential users.

6. Revive agricultural markets

Set up a new agricultural market and renovate a further eight. Build an integrated management platform for the city’s agricultural markets. Develop a smart online network documenting the food quality of the city’s agricultural markets.

7. Renovate old residences

Complete the renovation of old residential districts covering a total area of 2,200,000 square meters, including 500,000 square meters of dilapidated buildings. Increase urban green areas of 2,000,000 square meters. Rebuild 15 environmental sanitation public toilets in the city.

8. Smart city

Apply smart technologies to various fields in the city, including food and drug safety, elevator safety, fire equipment management, express supervision. Build IoT smart parking lots and a basis for smart house safety.

9. Cultural and medical services

Complete construction of more than 150 multifunctional cultural service centers. Upgrade the Wuxi New Sports Center and build smart venues. Put New Xishan District People’s Hospital and Xinrui Hospital into operation and complete the construction of the new Wuxi No. 4 People’s Hospital. Supply AED (Automated External Defibrillator) in large public places such as the railway station, central bus station, airport and scenic spots.

10. Education

Build seven kindergartens and expand 16 previously existing ones. Build 17 compulsory education schools and expand 16 old ones. Complete the first phase of Binjiang College of Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology and recruit students.

If the plans released are anything to go by, Wuxi residents have a wide range of reasons to be excited about the coming year.