Digital tech makes rural life in E China's Zhejiang more enjoyable

Digital technologies are widely applied in a village in Hangzhou city, east China's Zhejiang Province, bringing convenience to local villagers and making rural life more enjoyable.

Meilin village, Guali township, Xiaoshan district in Hangzhou has witnessed great changes since Zhejiang launched the Green Rural Revival Program to improve the living environment and facilities 20 years ago. And digital applications have made life here even better. To get a basic understanding of the village, one can scan a QR code with a smartphone, and will learn about the location of parking lots, public toilets, major scenic spots, and specialties.

A view of Meilin village. (Photo/Qianjiang Evening News)

A service center covering many aspects of the villagers' lives has been constructed. The center, which includes a health station, an unmanned shop, and a 24-hour library, has become a highlight of Meilin's efforts to turn into a futuristic village.

The health station allows villagers to deal with minor illnesses and injuries, and provides long-distance medical treatment. "The smart medical care services are great," said a villager named Wang Qiuling, who suffers from hypertension. Wang used to patronize large hospital to get the drugs to treat the chronic condition, but she can now take her blood pressure at home, and upload the data online for family doctors to follow. The latter will provide domiciliary consultation service if Wang develops high blood pressure. “Seventy percent of the villagers now receive medical services at the village," said Kong Gaomin, the first secretary of Meilin.

The library offers villagers audio books to listen to, and has an area for children to watch films. "I always bring my children here when I have the time," said villager Chen Guifang, who added that quite a few cultural activities for children such as reading parties are held at the library.

A once-barren field has been turned into a walkway empowered by an intelligent system. After users log in through a face-scanning system, data on the movement of users, such as the length the users had traveled and calories burned, can be recorded and shown on a screen in real time.

"The construction of a digital village targets people's needs for medical care services, education and leisure. With the help of science and technology, the villagers now enjoy a more convenient life," said Kong.