XN000022-1982-01-21 — Page 9

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 1982

ANOTHER NEW VILLAGE OPENED IN SHA TIN

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JUST IN TIME FOR LUNAR NEW YEAR, RESIDENTS OF A 200-YEAR-OLD VILLAGE IN SHA TIN, WHICH IS TO BE DEMOLISHED TO MAKE WAY FOR DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, MOVED TODAY (THURSDAY) INTO NEW HOMES BUILT NEARBY.

THE VILLAGE IS TSOK POK HANG, AND IT HAS 100 RESIDENTS, ALL WITH THE SURNAME LEE.

THE NEW HOMES WERE BUILT UNDER THE GOVERNMENT'S VILLAGE REMOVAL PROGRAMME.

THE NEW VILLAGE, WHICH RETAINS ITS OLD NAME, CONSISTS OF A CHI TONG AND 29 THREE-STOREY HOUSES.

PERFORMING THE MOVING-IN CEREMONY WAS THE DEPUTY NEW TERRITORIES REGIONAL SECRETARY, DR RICHARD BUTLER, WHO STRESSED THAT THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE VILLAGERS' CUSTOMARY ATTACHMENT TO THEIR CHI TONG HAD NOT BEEN FORGOTTEN,

THE RESURRECTION OF A CHI TONG IN THE NEW DEVELOPMENT WAS AN EXAMPLE OF RURAL AND TRADITIONAL DEVELOPMENT BEING INTEGRATED WITH NEW TOWN DEVELOPMENT, HE SAID.

+THE RURAL SECTOR IS INDEED AN INTEGRAL PART OF SHA TIN NEW TOWN AND I HOPE THAT YOUR NEW VILLAGE DEMONSTRATES THAT, DESPITE RAPID PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT AND URBANISATION OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS, YOUR SPECIAL NEEDS HAVE NOT BEEN FORGOTTEN.+

TSOK POK HANG IS THE FIFTH VILLAGE RESITE IN SHA TIN, OTHERS ARE KWAI TAI, PAT TSZ WO, KAK TIN TSUEN KUNG MIU AND FU YIU HA.

THE

BUILT BY PRIVATE CONTRACTORS, EACH HOUSE IS 65 SQUARE METRES IN AREA. GOVERNMENT HAS PROVIDED $11 MILLION TOWARDS CONSTRUCTION COSTS.

ALSO OFFICIATING AT THE CEREMONY WERE THE CHAIRMAN OF SHA TIN RURAL COMMITTEE, MR WAI HON-LEUNG- THE VILLAGE REPRESENTATIVE, MR LEE SHEK-YUNG AND LOCAL LEADER, MR NG CHAN-LAM.

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