A man cleans snow in front of his house in Keketuohai Town of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, January 10, 2010. Keketuohai, the second coldest places in China, witnessed heavy snowfalls on January 6-8, where the lowest temperature was nearly 40 degrees Celsius below zero. [Xinhua]

China's central government on Tuesday allocated 124 million yuan (US$18.2 million) to help people suffering from cold waves and blizzards in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia.

The Ministry of Finance said Tuesday that 74 million yuan, or 60 percent of the total, will be used to help with emergency transfer of residents, provision of basic living necessities and reconstruction of their battered homes.

The other 50 million yuan will be used to help farmers and herdsmen restore production, it said.

The central government has already allocated 197 million yuan to help disaster-affected areas to restore agricultural production, renovate and maintain school buildings and purchase equipment.

Harsh winter weather has hit most parts of northern China. Heavy snow has caused casualties and disrupted traffic in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The National Meteorological Center said Tuesday that Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia and and other northern regions will see strong wind, snow and temperature drop of 8 to 12 degrees Celsius in the coming three days.

(Xinhua News Agency January 20, 2010)