Li calls for timely, forceful measures amid outbreak

Premier Li Keqiang has urged China's health workers to fulfill their medical treatment duties while safeguarding their own health as the country battles to curb the outbreak of a new respiratory virus that has so far killed 17 people and infected hundreds.

During a visit to Xining, capital of Qinghai province, on Tuesday and Wednesday, Li said forceful measures must be adopted in a timely manner to control the spread of the new, pneumonia-causing strain of coronavirus.

The premier said during a visit to a Red Cross hospital in Xining that medical workers should be on guard 24 hours a day and make all-out efforts to treat the infected patients.

Li said that it is the glorious mission of medical workers to heal the sick, and it is also important for them to ensure their own safety.

He required local authorities to assume their duties, further refine their prevention and control measures and cope with the outbreak in a timely, efficient and transparent manner.

He noted that the authorities nationwide have come up with contingency plans for the outbreak, adding that the travel peak for the Spring Festival, which falls on Saturday, has increased the difficulty of virus prevention and control.

The premier presided over a State Council executive meeting on Monday which rolled out a host of measures to curb the virus.

The death toll from the outbreak, which first appeared in Wuhan, Hubei province, last month, has risen to 17.

The premier also visited patients who were hospitalized due to altitude sickness and called for greater efforts on treatment of the disease.

In addition, Li called on officials to learn lessons from the accident in which a section of a road collapsed into a sinkhole in Xining on Jan 14, which killed nine people.

Local authorities must carefully troubleshoot potential hazards to public facilities in urban areas, solve problems and ensure the quality of newly constructed projects, he said.

It is important to ensure the high-quality development of all facilities during urban infrastructure development, he added.

Li underlined the need to ensure adequate market supply and stable prices during the Spring Festival period as he visited an agricultural produce market.

The government must prioritize relief measures for those living difficult lives so that people can afford to have enough meat on their table, he said.

The premier also visited an old residential community in Xining and inquired about its heating and water supply and community-based services.

The government will scale up support for the renovation of old residential communities, he said.