Rural residents feel let down by policy to provide them with electrical appliances

Fifteen business days. That was the longest time Henan farmer Zhang Jun said he was told it would take to receive the government subsidy on the refrigerator he bought. After eight months, he is still waiting.

Mr Zhang, of Xi county, paid 1,999 yuan (HK$2,260) in June after hearing that the central government would reimburse him 13 per cent of the purchase price, or 260 yuan.

'I have asked the bank and the retailer a hundred times about the delay, and they just keep asking me to wait a few more days, without offering a reasonable explanation,' he said.

'Now I really feel like I have been deceived and bullied. I really don't understand why it is so difficult to implement a government policy meant to benefit farmers.'

The government policy is called jia dian xia xiang, or literally, 'sending household appliances to the vast countryside'. Despite the slightly comical name, the programme's three goals are very serious: to improve farmers' living conditions, to reduce manufacturers' household appliance inventories and to stimulate domestic consumption.

Beijing hoped to achieve those goals by giving 13 per cent rebates to farmers who bought a colour television, a refrigerator, a mobile phone or a washing machine. The scheme was launched in three provinces, including Henan, in December 2007, and went nationwide at the beginning of this month. It was also expanded to cover purchases of motorcycles, air conditioners, gas and electric water heaters and personal computers.