CHINESE CHILDREN GROWING TALLER!
China children outgrow old rules.
Improved living standards mean average heights are increasingBeijing officials have been forced to raise the maximum height requirement for children so they can continue to receive free public services.
The average height of children has risen, meaning many are being denied access to services they should be entitled to, state media reports say.
Authorities have now raised the height limit for free bus rides and other perks by 10cm (4in) to 1.2m (3ft 11in).
The increased stature has been put down to improved nutrition and health care.
The guidelines were first introduced 50 years ago.
They originally stated that any child under 7 years of age and below 1.1m (3ft 7in) was eligible for free bus rides, free entry to parks and theatres and free school lunches.
Steady increase
But the average height of Chinese children has increased by about 2.3cms (1in) to 3cms every decade since the guidelines were first drawn up, Xinhua news agency quotes Beijing Municipal Children's Studies Institute as saying.
"Because of the growth in height, China's 360 million children have run into problems of buying tickets," Xinhua said.
The BBC's Dan Griffiths in Beijing says the discrepancy has been a sore point with children and parents alike.
BBC NEWS REPORT.
Improved living standards mean average heights are increasingBeijing officials have been forced to raise the maximum height requirement for children so they can continue to receive free public services.
The average height of children has risen, meaning many are being denied access to services they should be entitled to, state media reports say.
Authorities have now raised the height limit for free bus rides and other perks by 10cm (4in) to 1.2m (3ft 11in).
The increased stature has been put down to improved nutrition and health care.
The guidelines were first introduced 50 years ago.
They originally stated that any child under 7 years of age and below 1.1m (3ft 7in) was eligible for free bus rides, free entry to parks and theatres and free school lunches.
Steady increase
But the average height of Chinese children has increased by about 2.3cms (1in) to 3cms every decade since the guidelines were first drawn up, Xinhua news agency quotes Beijing Municipal Children's Studies Institute as saying.
"Because of the growth in height, China's 360 million children have run into problems of buying tickets," Xinhua said.
The BBC's Dan Griffiths in Beijing says the discrepancy has been a sore point with children and parents alike.
posted by jackaranda at 11:56 pm
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