Aral (Xinjiang)

Aral ( Uyghur: ئارال شەھرى / Aral Xəhri; Chinese阿拉尔 市, pinyin Ālā'ěr Shì ) is an independent city in the immediate area Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China.

Administrative Divisions

At the community level, Aral is composed of four road districts, a municipality, eight Production and Construction Corps, two administrative offices, a state farm and a state prison. These are:

History

Aral was originally a village and a Chinese military garrison. In 1957, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, based in Aral on, made more than 1.2 million mu ( 800 km ²) of land under cultivation and established a ten cattle stations.

On 17 September 2002 Aral received pursuant to a decision of the State Council the status of an independent city.

Geography

Aral is located on the southern slope of the Tianshan Mountains, north of the Taklimakan Desert, on the upper reaches of the Tarim River, where the river Aksu, Hotan and Yarkant flow together.

The total area of the administrative area of 4196 km ², its extent from east to west about 130 km, from north to south, 60 km away.

Population

Aral had in 2002, approximately 260,000 inhabitants, mainly Han Chinese; 5.3 % of the population belonging to national minorities.

Economy

In Aral, there are three reservoirs ( Duōlàng多 浪, Shengli胜利and Shangyou上游) with a total area of ​​248.8 km ² and a capacity of 518 million cubic meters as well as rich groundwater reserves. There are cultivated wheat, cotton, fruits and vegetables. Cotton production is currently 183,000 tonnes per year and there are about 8,000 dairy cows. Aral is known for its Chinese dates ( jujubes ) and chestnuts.

Aral is connected to the railway network and a national cross-country road (No. 314 ) can be achieved.

Tourism

As tourist attractions especially the military garrisons, reservoirs and scenic beauties such as the Tarim River and the surrounding desert are recommended.