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The on-going facelift of the old urban district of Lhasa, capital city of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, is following the wishes of local Tibetan people,according to a recent survey.

Conducted by the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Lhasa's Chengguan District, the just-ended survey covers 1,000-oddTibetan households in the targeted renovation area. It solicits views on 14 specific issues, including living conditions and protection for Tibetan-style architecture.

"The survey shows local people, discontent with existing living conditions, are yearning for the renovations being done as soon as possible," said Zhaxi Toinzhub, chairman of the district congress.

According to Zhaxi Toinzhub, outmoded houses in the old urban district are mostly built of earth-wooden structures. So far, over 90 percent of them have been found to have cracked walls and moth-erosion wood. "In the rainy season, these houses pose real danger to residents' lives," he said.

Doje, who lives in Lane three of the Lupu area, noted that since residential houses in the old district has been out of repair for ages and they imbued with hidden dangers, a lot of urbanites in this area are ready to move out during the facelift. "Everyone hopes the government will repair and refurbish these houses as soon as possible," said Doje.

In the survey, residents also expressed the hope of better living conditions, and preference to have independent kitchens and modern toilets. Some also asked the government for help finding cheap interim housing for families in need, plus an improved water supply, drainage system and sewage networks.

The congress would report the views of the respondents to the relevant government offices and monitor how they followed these opinions, Zhaxi Toinzhub said.

The renovation of Lhasa's old urban district, which started in April this year, is expected to be completed by 2003. The government has allocated 70 million yuan (about 8.43 million US dollars) for repairing and renewing old, dilapidated residential compounds and 170 million yuan (about 20.48 million dollars) for upgrading infrastructure facilities, including water and power supplies.