People of Nanjing

Agriculture

Much of the land in the municipality’s rural districts and southern counties is under cultivation; the major agricultural products are rice, wheat, peanuts (groundnuts), and fruits and vegetables. In and around the many lakes and ponds, baihe (lily bulbs), water chestnuts, lotus roots, and other aquatic plants are grown. Both freshwater fishing and pig farming are important, and dairy production has increased significantly. Along the canals and creeks, farmers raise large flocks of ducks; the Nanjing duck, preserved in salt and pressed, is a delicacy of Chinese cuisine.

Manufacturing

Before 1949, Nanjing was noted chiefly for its traditional handicraft products, such as satins, velvets, and brocades. The city’s industrial expansion has taken place since then, and Nanjing is now an important industrial centre. Hundreds of factories have been built to produce iron and steel, machine tools, motor vehicles, bicycles, clocks and watches, optical instruments, and building materials. Textiles, food processing, and other light industries are also important. In the outlying districts and southern counties, iron ore, manganese, copper, limestone, dolomite, lead, and zinc are mined. Its reserves of strontium are among the largest in China. Petrochemical and electronic plants, however, mark the city’s greatest progress in industrial development. Its automobile production also ranks high in the country. A Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone, established by the national government and located northeast of the central city districts in suburban Qixia district, has facilities devoted to such areas as information technology, biomedical engineering, and the manufacture of light-industrial machinery and high-purity and precision chemicals.

Transportation

Nanjing’s major avenue of commerce is the Yangtze River, which connects the city with the Yangtze delta and with central China. The port of Nanjing is equipped with specialized coal, oil, container, and automobile roll-on/roll-off wharves. In addition to the major ports at Xiaguan and Pukou, there is a large port facility at Xinshengyu, some 6 miles (10 km) downstream from Xiaguan, that opened in the mid-1980s to directly handle foreign trade.

Nanjing is connected by rail to Shanghai to the southeast and to other major Chinese cities to the north. Intercity commuter rail service between Shanghai and Nanjing now takes less than 21/2hours one way. Another rail line, leading south and southwest, extends to Wuhu and Tongling in Anhui province; a loop line through the eastern suburban districts links it with the Shanghai-Nanjing line. In 1968 the rail ferry between Pukou and Xiaguan was replaced by the city’s first bridge across the Yangtze. More than 20,000 feet (6,100 metres) in length, it has a double-track railroad on its lower deck and a four-lane highway on the upper deck. Two more bridges have been built downstream of the first (opened in 2001 and 2005, respectively), the latter having a main span of 2,126 feet (648 metres).

While bicycles and buses are still major means of transport within Nanjing, the city streets have become increasingly crowded with cars and trucks that add significantly to traffic congestion in the downtown area. To help relieve this congestion, the city began construction of an extensive light-rail transit system, the first line of which opened in 2005. Major highways, including expressways, fan out from Nanjing to Shanghai and other cities in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui provinces. Nanjing Lukou International Airport, located in a southern suburban district some 22 miles (35 km) from the city centre, has regular flights to other major cities in China and to some international destinations.

Government

Nanjing’s municipal government is part of the hierarchical structure of the Chinese government—and the parallel structure of the Chinese Communist Party—that extends from the national organization, through the provincial apparatus, to the municipal and, ultimately, neighbourhood levels. The principal responsibilities of the Nanjing Municipal People’s Congress, the major decision-making body, include issuing administrative orders, collecting taxes, determining the budget, and implementing economic plans. A standing committee selected from its members recommends policy decisions and oversees the operation of the municipal government. Executive authority rests with the Nanjing People’s Government, the officers of which are elected by the congress; it consists of a mayor, vice mayors, and numerous bureaus in charge of public security, the judicial system, and other civil, economic, social, and cultural affairs.

Following the municipal government reorganization of 1995, Nanjing was divided administratively into 11 districts (qu), and the municipality was given jurisdiction over the 2 counties (xian) to the far south. Below the district level, police substations supervise the population, while street mayoralties handle civil affairs in their areas. Neighbourhood associations help mediate disputes, carry out literacy campaigns, and promote sanitation, welfare, and family planning.

Health

Nanjing made great progress in public health and medicine during the Nationalist period. Health conditions have continued to improve under the communist government, which has placed great emphasis on public health education. There are many general and specialized hospitals in Nanjing. However, many clinics and health stations previously maintained by neighbourhood associations, factories, and schools have been partially privatized since the 1990s. Nanjing is also a noted centre for training doctors in traditional Chinese medicine.

Education

Nanjing inherited from the Nationalist days an excellent school system that in 1949 included 300 primary and middle schools and some of the best universities and colleges in China. Since the 1950s there has been a considerable increase in the number of primary, middle, and technical secondary schools. In addition, much attention has been given to adult education, and many spare-time schools, university extensions, and other institutions that provide training in technical fields have been established. Nanjing University (1902), Southeast University (1902), Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (1952), and Nanjing University of Science and Technology (1953) are among the leading institutions of higher education in the country, and colleges of hydraulic engineering, agricultural science, medical and pharmaceutical sciences, and meteorology are also of national significance.