This Day, That Year

Item from April 7, 1995, in China Daily: Farmers of Henan province's Fugou county, one of the country's major cotton-producing areas, raise cotton seedlings. To ensure high yields, the county has bought high-quality seeds and hired technicians to spread advanced cotton-planting techniques.

Agriculture Minister Liu Jiang on Wednesday urged localities throughout the country to intensify spring planting work and take preventive measures against natural disasters.

Three decades ago, the authorities began implementing a series of reforms to improve efficiency in agricultural production, from hand to machine-plowing as the above showing that drones and farming trucks were used in the spring plough in Fangjiaji village, Hubei province on March 30. These reforms have reshaped China's agricultural industry and elevated its position in the global economy as the country with 11 consecutive years of bumper grain harvests.