Chen and his family are beneficiaries of a reform carried out by the provincial government, which allows the registered residence of a person, formerly permanent, to change based on where they own a house.

Tuesdays in Zhejiang, some 2,400 farmers follow Chen's footsteps each day to become city residents. According to estimates, during the past three years, a total of 2.88 million local farmers have left the countryside and moved into cities.

Zhejiang took the lead in the household registration system reform seven years ago and today the strict control exercised over local farmers as well as people coming from other places to make a living has been loosened to a large extent.

Thirty-eight-year-old Rao Xiangang from the countryside of central China's Henan Province has been doing business in Fenghua city of Zhejiang for ten years, and two years ago he successfully moved the registered residence of his five-member household from Henan to Zhejiang.

Rao became one the first beneficiaries of a reform by the Fenghua City government which stipulates that non-townsfolk with a legal settled residence and stable occupation or financial income in the city can apply for permanent registered residence.

This year, Zhejiang has taken several major steps forward in the reform of the household registration system, and the past barriers blocking farmers from cities are expected to be further removed.

(Xinhua News Agency January 6, 2002)