Sichuan Beichuan young man carves out a path to prosperity with one hand
Zhang Qijun carrying green peppers home on his back
In midsummer, high-mountain green peppers enter harvest season. In Group 3 of Yanlin Village, Guanling Township, Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County, impoverished household resident Zhang Qijun is busy picking green peppers in his own pepper field, his dark red face full of smiles. Thanks to the targeted poverty alleviation policy and the devoted assistance of relevant county and township departments, this disabled young man who once endured so much hardship in life has "dug" out a path to prosperity of his own with his one remaining hand.
An accident led to high amputation of his right arm
Zhang Qijun is 38 years old this year. At the age of 6, an accident resulted in the high amputation of his right arm, which made an already destitute family even worse off. In 2004, Deng Xianyan, a young woman from the same village, did not disdain his poverty and was willing to build a life with this honest and kind-hearted man. The two married, and subsequently had two children one after another.
Just as the whole family was looking forward to a bright future, a sudden accident took his wife away, leaving two children under ten years old to depend on each other with Zhang Qijun. The pain of bereavement and the hardships of the family gradually bent this man's back and robbed him of his strength.
Targeted poverty alleviation helped him onto the path to prosperity
Just when Zhang Qijun was at his wit's end, the national targeted poverty alleviation policy brought him a new dawn of hope.
After learning about the real difficulties of Zhang Qijun's family, relevant departments of Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County, the Party committee and government of Guanling Township, and village and community officials formulated assistance measures for him, visiting his home for sympathy and discussion to help dispel his psychological gloom and restore his confidence in life; they provided free seedlings, technical guidance and after-sales service, and encouraged him to join a vegetable planting cooperative; they mobilized Party members, officials and neighbors to help with sowing, harvesting and transportation; and to ease his worries, the Beichuan Qiang Soul Public Welfare Charity Organization provided educational assistance for his two children.
With everyone's tireless assistance, Zhang Qijun actively developed farming and breeding. Today his family grows more than 10 mu of "Qiang Mountain Small Golden Yellow" corn, 2 mu of green peppers, 1 mu of green beans, and 1 mu of konjac, and also raises more than 30 commercial pigs and more than 20 free-range chickens. "Planting has already brought in more than 15,000 yuan this year, and raising pigs and chickens will bring in another 17,000 yuan or more. Add other income, and over a year it can be around 40,000 yuan. I also planted 3 mu of Gastrodia elata and 25 mu of walnuts, and next year they will all bear fruit too." Speaking of the future, Zhang Qijun is full of confidence.
Now that he is prosperous, he still strives to give back to society
The reporter did the math for Zhang Qijun: at this rate of development, within the next three years, his family's average annual income will steadily remain above 30,000 yuan. For a family that once lived on the edge of subsistence for a long time, this is nothing short of a dream, but what makes Zhang Qijun happy and excited is that with the help of "targeted poverty alleviation," his dream of prosperity has truly come true.
"The Party committee and government, village and community officials, and charity organizations care for and help me so much. If I don't work hard, I will let them down, and even more so my two children. I must work hard, not only to make my own family prosperous, but also to strive to give back to society!" Standing in the lush green vegetable field, Zhang Qijun has clear goals and a clear plan in mind. This one-armed young man so battered by fate firmly believes that his road to prosperity will surely grow wider and wider.