City steps up to help needy during holiday season

About 756 million yuan (US$109 million) in subsidies will be earmarked for needy people in Shanghai to help them enjoy a happy New Year and Spring Festival, the city government announced on Friday.

The money is estimated to benefit 1.07 million people in the city, including disabled people who are unemployed, those facing financial stress because of illness, and families living on subsistence allowances, according to the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau.

Meanwhile, city authorities will step up help the needy and the homeless on the streets.

Needy students, women, and elderly and disabled people will get assistance from bodies such as the Shanghai Education Commission, the Shanghai Disabled Persons' Federation, the Red Cross Society of China's Shanghai branch and the Shanghai Charity Foundation.