Xi stresses solid efforts to advance "toilet revolution" in rural areas

BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed further pushing forward the "toilet revolution" in the country's rural areas, calling for solid efforts and practical work to ensure quality and actual results of the campaign.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an instruction on the work to advance the "toilet revolution."

Thanks to sustained efforts to promote clean toilets in recent years, notable improvements have been made in the rural living environments, Xi said.

Rural "toilet revolution" will continue to be an important task of rural vitalization in the next five years, he said, calling for solid progress in light of local conditions and in a scientific manner while avoiding formalism and waste of resources.

Authorities at all levels should make joint efforts and perform their duties to produce good and concrete outcomes, said Xi.

Xi's instruction was read out at a national meeting on the "toilet revolution" in the rural areas, which was held Friday in Hengyang of central China's Hunan Province.

Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua, who attended the meeting, stressed efforts to carry forward the work steadily and pragmatically under the principle of "quality first."

Hu called for simultaneous progress in improving toilets, ensuring water supply and treating sewage to ensure hygienic standards are met, as well as giving full play to the principal role of farmers in the campaign.