Drought in farmland of central China's Henan Province and its northern neighbor Hebei Province has been alleviated as measures like artificial rainfall enhancement and water diversion for irrigation were taken.
The measures, together with the natural rains which fell from Saturday to Monday, have effectively moisturized soil in Henan, with the average precipitation reaching 17.3 millimeters in the province, according to Henan Provincial Meteorological Observatory.
Agricultural experts said the rains provided relief at a key juncture for crop growth in the province.
"Yesterday (June 16), the whole province experienced a round of rainfall, which helped seedlings of fall crops to sprout. Drought in over 90 percent of the province has been effectively eased, laying a solid foundation for fall crops across the province to grow," said Ping Xishuan, a researcher for the Henan Provincial General Station of Agricultural Technology Promotion.
As a result of the efforts by the Henan Provincial Meteorological Bureau to induce rainfall, farmlands in over 11 cities and regions across the province saw their drought eased.
"You see that I grab a handful of soil to the height of my shoulders, then I release the soil and it falls apart before it reaches the farmland. That indicates that the soil's saturation moisture content is about 70 percent," said Wang Zhishen, senior agricultural technician for the agricultural and rural affairs bureau of northeastern Henan's Fengqiu County.
In the nearby Hebei Province, another major cereals production outpost, local authorities have been working to timely release weather forecasts and warnings, dispatch water and provide agricultural technique guidance to minimize the impacts of drought.
By Monday morning, the local government of Hebei's Guangping County has cumulatively sent four million cubic meters of water to 50 villages for farmland irrigation. The county produces wheat, maize, sweet potatoes, peanuts and a variety of other crops.
"As an emergency measure, we have withdrawn four million cubic meters of water from the Yuecheng Reservoir to ensure that farmers have enough water for irrigation and to ease the drought," said Gao Haizhou, deputy director of the Guangping County Agricultural and Rural Affairs Bureau.
Seedlings sprout as natural, artificial rainfalls ease drought in central China
A total of 190 talented young people from different countries, with an average age of 22, demonstrated their professional skills and innovative abilities in the category focused on new quality productive forces during the second Belt and Road International Skills Competition held in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
The competition took place from Monday to Wednesday and attracted nearly 600 skilled professionals from 61 countries and regions. The event was aimed to provide a platform for talented youth to communicate, exchange skills, and promote international exchange and cooperation in the field of vocational skills and to further advance the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
This year's competition included contests in areas of automotive technology and operating industrial robot systems, with over half focused on new quality productive forces. Among the 190 participants, the average age was 22, with over 95 percent aged 30 or younger, and more than 40 percent aged 20 or younger.
Tumelo, a 15-year-old from Lesotho, was the youngest competitor, participating in the industrial robot system operation event. Despite his age, he showed exceptional skills. "I feel like I'm already gaining experience. This is going to increase my chances of being accepted into better universities and actually doing well in the university," said the young participant.
Operating industrial robot systems demands proficiency in mechanics, electrical engineering, automation, programming, and artificial intelligence, making it a multifaceted skill for competitors.
"Based on this morning's results in the first phase of the competition, the contestants were generally able to complete about 80 percent of the tasks. Such a performance represents the highest level of achievements by the participants of various countries and regions," said Yang Rongjin, head judge of the industrial robot system operation event.
This year's competition included six showcase events including intelligent automobile software technology, providing participants a glimpse into the future direction of the new energy vehicle industry.
"In the past, I might not have seen or known much about this field, but through the competition, we can learn and discover more," said a Chinese competitor Ouyang Lin.
"There is a shortage of professionals in the new quality productive forces, which is a common challenge among the BRI countries. Our goal is to develop human resources and cultivate skilled talents while advancing the development of new quality productive forces," said Wang Xiaojun, deputy director of the Vocational Capacity Building Department at the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.
Global young talents compete in new quality productive forces category at BRI skills contest
