A village lost to university progress

Once a sleepy village, centuries-old Beigang has come to resemble a scene from a gold rush recently thanks to the construction of Guangzhou's University Town.

For the past few months, the village on Xiaoguwei island in the Pearl River - one of only four saved from the wrecker's ball as communities are being razed to make space for 10 new university campuses - has been a hive of activity as businesses were set up to meet the needs of 100,000 construction workers.

Villagers' homes were rented out to restaurant operators, barbers' shops and games parlours. At midday, workers jostle back and forth from dining halls while smells of cooking hang in the air.

Only 409 of Beigang's original 2,000 households still live in the village, among them Ms Shao, who can trace her ancestry back 21 generations. Ms Shao, her parents and younger brother have moved in with her older brother, renting out their home to make up for livelihood lost from their confiscated land.

The 30-year-old has managed to find work as a member of the village's newly formed security squad, but her two brothers are forced to look for odd jobs in Shiqiao.

The university authorities said one person from each household would be able to work as a security guard but in reality not everyone got a job, she said.