Shanghai is to carry out a one-and-half year planning process for the development of 100 suburb towns, Mayor Chen Liangyu told a government conference on Tuesday.
After the completion of the process, Chen said, the development would adhere to the plan and would not be altered by changes of town leaderships.
It is estimated that by 2020, Shanghai's suburb towns will have a combined population of about 6 million with 900 square kilometers for construction.
According to the plan, a series of industrial zones will be established scientifically in the areas and new residential areas will also be completed.
Chen said that in the 21st century, Shanghai's development center would shift from urban areas to suburbs and a systematic plan would help build the suburb area more effectively.
(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2002)
