BEIJING, Aug. 20 -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) has called for scientific and orderly efforts to resettle homeless people and rebuild in the quake zone in southwest China's Yunnan Province.

The instructions were carried in a statement released after a Wednesday meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, presided over by General Secretary Xi Jinping.

A 6.5-magnitude earthquake in Ludian, Yunnan on Aug. 3, killed more than 600 people and destroyed 80,000 homes.

"Post-quake reconstruction should be scientific and based on a thorough and objective evaluation of losses," the statement said, stressing quake resistance for reconstructed buildings. The severe damage and death toll have been blamed on the poor construction of buildings, dense population and the quake's shallow epicenter.

In a statement shortly after the quake, the China Earthquake Administration revealed that most rural houses in the county were made of brick or wood, and not designed to be resistant to quakes.