OREANDA-NEWS. The city of Chuzhou in the east of Anhui province is bidding for the membership of the Hefei Economic Rim, an urban agglomeration surrounding the provincial capital: Hefei, local authorities said on Thursday.


After the first alteration to its domain, the economic belt is considering absorbing Chuzhou, a prefecture-level city bordering Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, according to the Municipal Development and Reform Commission of Hefei.

Last year, Dingyuan county was included into the region, while Wuwei, Hexian and Hanshan counties were removed out of the territory as a result of an adjustment of administrative divisions.

The commission, which has received an application from the municipal government of Chuzhou, said it will convene a meeting later this year to decide whether to approve it or not.

If the city is absorbed into the Hefei Economic Rim, local media said, it will help the region "go hand in hand" with the Nanjing Metropolitan Area and get fully integrated into the development of the richer Yangtze River Delta.

In addition to handling Chuzhu's application, drawing up a program for an industrial park surrounding the Hefei Xinqiao International Airport is high on the economic planner's agenda for this year.

Also, Hefei will build an industrial corridor in cooperation with Huainan, a Hefei Economic Rim city rich in coal.