Residency curbs

The government said on Monday that it will ease the requirements for permanent residency in many large cities as part of its new urbanization* push.

Restrictions on permanent residence permits should be scrapped* in cities with populations between 1 million and 3 million, according to a document outlining key urbanization tasks this year released by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country’s top economic planner. For cities with populations of 3 million to 5 million, the qualifications for such permits should be “fully relaxed,” and the restrictions for certain key groups of people to get such permits should be removed, the document said.

Forest fire

A forest fire that killed 27 firefighters and three locals in Southwest China’s Sichuan Province a week ago started to burn again on Saturday afternoon, local authorities said.

The 30 victims have been approved for recognition as martyrs* by the Ministry of Emergency Management and the Sichuan Provincial Government. Around 5 p.m. on Saturday, the fire was found to have started in the northeastern part of the forest, according to the sources with Muli County, Liangshan Yi Autonomous* Prefecture*.

World-class garden

Known as “Flower City” because of its blooming flowers all year round, South China’s Guangzhou plans to build a world-class garden named “Guangzhou Garden,” local authorities said.

Construction for the project will start in May, according to the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Forestry and Landscaping. According to the report, “Guangzhou Garden” is planned to be built in the south part of the Baiyun Mountain scenic area with a planned area of 151.8 hectares.

Losing weight

A recent survey by China Youth Daily showed that 89.61 percent of university students quit trying to lose weight midway.

Among the surveyed students from 40 universities across China, 72.73 percent expressed dissatisfaction with their body shape and 77.78 percent were or are losing weight. The survey showed that 85.71 percent of interviewees have tried to lose weight by dieting. (SD-Agencies)