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Monday, Apr 06, 2009
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Rebuilding lives battered by quake

K.V. Prasad

30,000 people affected in Wu Xi city

— PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

ROCKED: Apartments that became uninhabitable.

WU XI CITY: By the end of this month, some 30,000 people would once again start rebuilding their lives in a permanent structure that promises to withstand an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale, a degree more secure than the tremor changed their lives for ever.

Nestled in the Longmen mountainous range, this city lies 100 km northwest of Chengdu, capital of Western Sichuan province.

Along with several other areas in the region, the city was flattened in the May 12 earthquake that left nearly 70,000 dead, 18,000 missing and some 3.75 lakh people injured.

Modern facilities

Authorities in Han Wang, one of the several areas badly affected by the tremor told The Hindu last week that by the end of April, some 10,000 homes would be ready for the people to move in the new township that boasts of a modern hospital and schools for both kindergarten and seniors.

The task of reconstruction in the quake-hit areas began in earnest with the Central government promising to spend Yuan 1 trillion (approx Rs.7,00,000 crore) in three years

The authorities said while the poor and the homeless would be allotted apartments on lease, those who owned houses would get them according to the size and number of people who lived in the houses that are either uninhabitable or reduced to rubble. Flats in this new township in a four-storey structure would have an area between 50 square metres and 120 square metres, built for different income levels and a mix of urban and rural population, Lin Yongqiang, Deputy Director of the city’s Planning Bureau, said.

Mr. Yongqiang said the first stage of the Yuan 200 million (Rs. 1,400 crore) reconstruction project in the area began last November and would be ready by the end of this month.

The schools will be ready by September, when the new academic session begins.

Equipping schools

“All schools being built would be well-equipped and the government wants to relocate the people now staying in temporary shelters to permanent structure within this year,” said Deng Jianhua, Deputy Director Information of Deyang City.

Mr. Deng said the industries in the Han Wang township in the region had been relocated while areas affected by quake were being constantly monitored to ensure there was no contamination.

Plans

Plans include reclamation of quake-hit areas for agriculture purposes to compensate for the land now being used for reconstruction.

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