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Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji announced on Dec.27 the start of a gigantic project to divert water from the Yangtze River to the country's thirsty northern areas.

The premier made the announcement at a ceremony held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Involving an investment of 59 billion US dollars, the project could cost twice as much as the ongoing Three Gorges project. Major beneficiaries include Beijing and Tianjin cities, and Jiangsu and Shandong provinces in east China.

Ceremonies marking the start of the project were also held at the construction sites in Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, where hundreds of bulldozers began working.

The water diversion project consists of three south-to-north canals with each running about 1,300 km across the eastern, middle and western parts of the country.

To be built in three stages, the three canals will link up the country's four major rivers, namely the Yangtze River, Yellow River, Huaihe River and Haihe River.

Upon its completion in the middle of the century, the project will be able to deliver 44.8 billion cubic meters of water into the north each year, about the annual volume of water into the Yellow River.

Zhang Jirao, vice-minister of water resources, said the project would significantly alleviate acute water shortage along the Yellow River, Huaihe River and Haihe River, eastern Shandong and some areas in northwestern China.