Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao presides over the 14th meeting of the earthquake relief headquarters in Beijing on May 27, 2008. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Earthquake relief work has entered a "new stage" and more efforts should be focused on resettlement and post-quake reconstruction in damaged areas, the earthquake relief headquarters under China's State Council agreed at a meeting on Tuesday.
The meeting was presided over by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, also head of the quake relief headquarters.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao presides over the 14th meeting of the earthquake relief headquarters in Beijing on May 27, 2008. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
Efforts to search for survivors should continue, but more importance should be attached to the resettlement of quake-affected people, restoration of production and reconstruction, the meeting said.
It called for more epidemic experts to be sent to all villages in the quake zones for disease prevention. Inoculation on people vulnerable to infectious diseases in the quake zones should be carried out as soon as possible.
Local authorities must handle well the aftermath of the quake dead and take good care of those affected in the quake, the meeting said, urging sufficient supplies of makeshift accommodation for the affected, especially those in remote mountainous areas.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao listens to the report on the swelling earthquake-induced lakes during the 14th meeting of the earthquake relief headquarters in Beijing on May 27, 2008. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
It urged quake relief forces to address the threat posed by the swelling earthquake-induced Tangjiashan Lake to downstream regions, citing it as one of the "most pressing jobs at hand".
Other quake-induced disasters and aftershocks should be carefully guarded against, the meeting said.
It urged that social order should be maintained in the quake zones, with restoration of production and post-quake reconstruction to be planned in the meantime.
BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Rehabilitation in China's quake-hit zone will take a long time as quite a number of towns and villages need to move to new sites, said a report issued by the earthquake relief headquarters of the State Council here Tuesday.
As the relief work has moved into a new stage, the headquarters plans to pick up preparation for rehabilitation and set up a team in charge of it, the report said. Full story
MIANYANG, Sichuan Province, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A swollen "quakelake" in one of the worst hit areas in China's devastating earthquake has topped the country's agenda of relief work.
In a phone call on Monday night, Chinese President Hu Jintao told Vice Premier Hui Liangyu, who were in southwestern Sichuan province to oversee the quake relief work, that the relief task force must make sure no serious problems occur in the emergencies. Full story
CHENGDU, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China is mounting an all-out effort to save thousands of cultural relics damaged or destroyed in the May 12 earthquake.
According to the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, 139 cultural relics units under state protection, including 239 regarded as precious in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces and Chongqing Municipality, have been severely damaged as a result of the magnitude-8.0 tremor. Full story
