China's capital Beijing plans to limit the number of residents in the city center to 900,000 by 2020, a move which will reduce the downtown population density by nearly 45 percent.

The city center, a 62.5-square-kilometer area inside the Second Ring Road, had 1.65 million residents at the end of 2003, according to the latest data available.

"That figure will be brought down to around 900,000 by 2020, which means 750,000 residents will have to move out of the city center and the rest will enjoy more spacious housing," said Chen Gang, director of Beijing Municipal Planning Committee, in a report to the city's legislature.

To achieve that goal, the municipal government will renovate ramshackle houses in the city center and build new residential and commercial centers as well as create more jobs in the outer areas, said Wang Wenhong, vice director of the committee.

The Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress deliberated the report Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Wang said a detailed plan on the city center's population control will be completed for deliberation by the municipal government by the end of this year.

Beijing announced early this year it will limit the city center population to 1.1 million by 2020.

"We decided to move more people to the outer regions because it benefits Beijing's urban development, heritage protection and improvement of living standards," said Wang.

(Xinhua News Agency December 2, 2005)