Nearly 120,000 people live in Beijing’s underground

Garbage collector Quan Youzhi, 66, from Henan province, has been living inside an underground utility compartment outside Lidu Park in Beijing's Chaoyang district. [Photo/China Daily]

Beijing will continue its 3-year campaign to cope with about 119,100 people living in thousands of risky underground facilities, according to Beijing Daily.

The 3,125 facilities include 932 civil air-defense constructions and another 2,192 regular residential basements.

Beijing announced to tackle these risky facilities between late 2014 and December 2017, addressing issues like illegal use of underground space and sprawling expansion.

The capital city plans to employ technology to improve the management of underground space with the support of current government public security resources.

At the same times, Beijing will also transform the function of underground space from dwelling to philanthropic.

Beijing has finished administration of 325,000 square meters of underground space in 353 locations up till now.

With a population of more than 21 million, the city is faced with limited space and high demand for affordable housing. Many have chosen to live underground where residents have communal bathrooms and shared kitchens.