BEIJING, Oct. 7 (Xinhuanet) -- In the 1950s, a special group of former soldiers arrived in China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to open up a new frontier. They’re known as the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, a major force for economic construction in the region. October 7th marks the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of this special group that now numbers millions of people. They generate GDP worth hundreds of billions of yuan a year.
They were soldiers turned pioneers. Arriving in Xinjiang with few resources, they built homes and towns that eventually turned into cities. Their goal was to create farmland from the desert. Now, their legacy is renowned and has earned them the respect of the nation. They are the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, or XPCC.
"My father had quite a hard time back then. Working conditions were very tough. But things are much better for my generation," Ma Hongxin, Employee of XPCC’s No.12 Division, said.
The XPCC is a unique organization, administered by both the central government and the Party committee of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Founded in 1954, the XPCC now has a population of 2.7 million people with various divisions and regiments. Its administrative area is some 80,000 square kilometers, and includes seven cities in the region.
Over the decades, the XPCC has created thousands of enterprises. In 2013, its GDP reached 148 billion yuan, accounting for more than 17% of Xinjiang’s total GDP.
The XPCC has developed agricultural industries using advanced farming equipment and water-saving technologies. Employing drip irrigation under plastic film has cut water needs for irrigation in half.
"We learned drip irrigation from Israel. But later we made our own innovations. So far our technology has been used in many other dry areas across the country. It’s also being used in some Central Asian and African countries," Chen Lin, deputy manager of XPCC’s Tianye Group, said.
The XPCC has also invested billions of yuan in fruit production.
Xinjiang is China’s largest area for grape production. In recent years, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps has made efforts to build many grape vineyards like this one. They’re trying to build more comprehensive and intensive grape production line. Meanwhile, they’re also seeking wider markets both home and abroad.
To facilitate the trade in XPCC-produced fruit and vegetables the corps has built the largest agricultural products trade market in northwest China. Hundreds of different types of crops are traded here.
While trade is key to the expansion of the XPCC, it has never stopped fighting the desert. The corps has planted hundreds of square kilometers of forests.
As you can see on this shelter belt, on one side is the desert while the other side is the forest. Those trees standing over there act as a wall of protection.
In recent years, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps has been moving forward under the goals of urbanization, industrialization and agricultural modernization. Officials say they will continue to promote economic development to help ensure the region’s social stability and ethnic harmony in the future.
(Source: CNTV.cn)
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