"Some households that have received basic living allowances for a while due to temporary financial difficulties want to maintain the allowance money as an extra income after their incomes have surpassed the local basic living standard. Once we find such a situation, we go to their homes to persuade them into reporting their income change to the government, which would take them off the list of recipients for the next month," Su said.

The timely distribution of basic living allowance in rural areas in Fengtai District, in the southeastern area of Beijing, is made easy through a fast application process that takes 35 days. That is to say, within 35 days after a rural household applies for basic living allowances, the district government is obliged to either ratify the application or explain to the applicants why they are ineligible. To avoid any cheating, the applicant's name and information are publicized in his or her village.

In 2006 Fengtai District Government, which administrates a rural population of 130,000, distributed basic living allowances totaling 2.32 million yuan to around 1,400 people. Between January and September 2007, another 2.91 million yuan was paid by the district government in basic living allowances for farmers. It benefited about 1,500 people.

Imbalanced picture

In March, Premier Wen Jiabao announced a plan to complete a nationwide rural basic living guarantee system in 2007 while delivering his government work report to the annual session of the National People's Congress. Although this measure has been widely reported by the media as a cornerstone measure in promoting social fairness and building a harmonious society, it is no longer news in many parts of China. By the end of 2006, 15.09 million farmers had already benefited from the basic living guarantee system.

For example, the 13 districts and counties under Beijing launched basic living guarantee pilot projects as early as 1997 and had covered the entire rural population in the area under the system by the end of 2002.

But in the relatively less developed central and western parts of the country, the project is only just being built. The Tibetan Autonomous Region is one of the eight provinces and autonomous regions that had not started the project by the end of 2006. In 2007, Tibet is planning to distribute allowances to all farmers and herders whose annual net incomes are lower than 800 yuan, which is going to benefit a population of 230,000.

The standard for basic living levels varies significantly between different regions of China. Eastern Shandong Province sets its basic living income at 800 yuan, while in the Beijing area it is 1,100 yuan a year. Even among different districts and counties in Beijing, local governments have stipulated basic living standards for farmers that are hugely different. While Fengtai and two other districts close to the city's downtown area apply the highest standard of 3,960 yuan a year, the lowest standard of 1,100 yuan is adopted in Yanqing County.

The gaps are expected to narrow with more investment from the Central Government. On July 31, Vice Minister of Civil Affairs Li Liguo announced that the first batch of funding from the central treasury totaling 3 billion yuan would soon be distributed to provincial governments, mainly to those in central and western regions with less advanced economies. Minister of Civil Affairs Li Xueju said at an August press conference that funding from the Central Government to the cause is bound to rise, which should boost the hopes of poor rural families all over China.

Hope is not dead for Wang Shuying's family. "In a few years, my Lingling will get married. It will be better that her husband will be married into the family so that the root of our family will be maintained. But everything Lingling wants is fine with us," said Wang, with the smile of a proud grandma.