Overgrown Beijing 'forbids' development in core areas

Beijing, July 26 (IANS) In its bid to decongest the Chinese capital, authorities have banned construction of new universities and hospitals around the Forbidden City located in downtown Beijing.

Manufacturing and building industries, as well as wholesale businesses are strictly banned from being located in the core districts of Xicheng and Dongcheng which comprises of the Forbidden City, Xinhua reported citing a catalog jointly constituted by 10 departments including Beijing municipal committee of development and reform.

Hotels, office buildings, and exhibition halls are restricted to be built in the core districts, according to the "negative list" policy.

General manufactures such as construction materials, paper, and textile, coal-fired power plants, regional logistic bases, and regional specialised markets are either banned or limited in all districts of Beijing.

The negative list will help lay a solid foundation for a cutting edge economic structure and leave more space for neighbourhood co-development of Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei province.

The catalog was mapped out for better and scientific development of Beijing, according to the Beijing municipal committee of development and reform.

The Forbidden City, that houses the UNESCO-listed Palace Museum in Central Beijing, welcomes more than 15 million visitors every year.

Beijing has been suffering from over population, heavy traffic jams, shortage of water supply, and poor air quality.

The population of permanent residents in Beijing exceeded 21 million by the end of 2013, according to the municipal bureau of statistics.