Inspired by the State Council's establishment of a special office to oversee transformation of old industrial bases, Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang, the three northeastern provinces that form what once was the country's foremost industrial base, are reportedly setting up similar operations.

Mass layoffs from State firms and subsequent swelling of the ranks of the urban poor in the Northeast have combined to seriously impact the country's economic and political balance. Neither Beijing nor the provinces can afford to see the region sink further.

A product of meticulous government planning, the high concentration of mammoth State-owned enterprises cultivated the region's long reliance on government directions.

The new office in Beijing comes as a great relief for local authorities crying for central government assistance. It is an institutional guarantee for Beijing's latest vow to shore up the veteran manufacturing base.

Despite the earlier message from Beijing that the recovery programme would pursue a course other than major financial infusion, anticipation of handsome financial allocations and policy incentives still runs high in the region.

Monetary assistance is crucial to keeping some struggling State firms afloat, and favourable government policies have nurtured plenty of success stories in China over the past two decades.

The ailing northeastern industrial base needs both.

Even to simply make up for its neglect of the Northeast industrial veterans in recent years, Beijing has an obligation to disburse funds.

But as many have observed, money alone cannot rejuvenate the Northeast. Nor will favourable policies be enough.

The No 1 priority for the Northeast is a change of mindset. The region must re-orient itself and come to terms with the new economic realities.

Until it ceases its habitual dependence on the government's helping hand and adapts to the visible realities of the market, the region will find it difficult to reclaim past glories.

In this sense, the ongoing discussion about northeasterners is essential.

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