Old heating rules should be changed

ON NOV 1, North China's Tianjin began delivering its annual central heating service to its residents, two weeks ahead of the national schedule. China Daily writer Zhang Zhouxiang comments:

According to the national schedule, heating companies are required to provide central heating services to residents no later than Nov 15. For decades, residents in the northern provinces, cities, and autonomous regions had to wait until that day to get warm indoors.

However, the weather varies from year to year, and the cold days may come before that date. Especially in recent years, the temperature in Beijing and neighboring Hebei province often falls to only a few degrees centigrade in early November.