Chen Xiwen, deputy head of Central Rural Work Leading Group attends a press conference on economic issues during the Third Session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing, China, March 6, 2015. [Photo/IC]

Rural planner urges gradual urbanization

Chen Xiwen, deputy director of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, said he opposes making non-farm land tradable on the free market for housing, and blindly introducing commercial investment into agriculture.

He said that because urbanization and rural modernization are a gradual process, rural problems should be studied on a case by case basis.

"A house in a rural area is worth less money than a house in the city. What if farmers can't afford a house in a big city, after their land or land use rights were sold? And if companies appropriated a wide swathe of farmlands to launch mass production, but can't hire as many farmers, the farmers will become unemployed. In some cases, it takes three to four generations for a rural family to finally adapt to urban life," Chen said in an interview with The Beijing News.