Residents roam to tap better resources

Almost one-third of Beijingers do not live in the place where their hukou - or permanent residency - is registered, according to official data released on Monday.

The results of the sixth population census found that 3.45 million people lived away from home in 2010, an increase of 1.28 million on a decade ago. Roughly 1.83 million were not even living in their native district.

A statement from the Beijing bureau of statistics suggested the shift has been caused by demolition-related relocations, and residents' work or study commitments.

"The separation represents the imbalance in the distribution of public-service resources, with most concentrated downtown, especially schools and hospitals," said Duan Chengrong, a professor of demography at Renmin University of China's school of sociology and population.

He urged authorities to reverse the trend by developing more resources in suburban areas, adding: "It would also ease the traffic congestion problems in the city center."

The census data shows that 37.1 percent of inner-city migrants left their hukou residences more than six years ago.

Wu Xiaoyu, 25, who lives in Chaoyang district's Yayuncun area but is registered in nearby Dongdaqiao, said: "If I have a child in the future, I will register them in Haidian district - where I have another apartment - because of the rich education resources."

According to the statistics bureau, 1.4 million people registered in the downtown districts of Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chaoyang and Haidian have already migrated elsewhere in the capital.

China Daily

(China Daily 06/01/2011)