Premier Zhu Rongji has significantly increased the power of the Ministry of Water Resources in repairing flood defences along the Yangtze River.
The China Economic Times reported yesterday that the State Council had approved a 10 billion yuan (HK$9.3 billion) budget rise for the river each year for the next few years.
The decision was made in August when Mr Zhu chaired a State Council meeting.
Mr Zhu decreed a quarter of the money would go directly to the Ministry of Water Resources' Yangtze River Conservancy Committee, to be used exclusively on repairing key dykes.
Previously, the central Government set aside the money and local governments had the power to make all final decisions regarding how it would be spent.
The move significantly bolsters the committee's power and appears to be a rebuke for local governments which have been strongly criticised by Mr Zhu for shoddy construction, what he labelled 'tofu projects'.