Three children stand in their family’s utility vehicle at a demolition site in Jinhe, Xichuan county, Henan province, August 2011, as villagers prepared to move out as part of a relocation program.
With the village largely empty of people, a bulldozer flattens a piece of ground in the village of Jinhe, August 2011.
Slogans like this one, which reads “Look at the Big Picture, Be Willing to Sacrifice, Strive to Become an Exemplary Migration Town,” are all over the resettled area, urging farmers to demolish their houses.
Children bathe before departing.
A farmer demolishes his own house in Jinhe. Roof tiles that could be salvaged were loaded onto a truck and taken away.
A ceremony marks the send-off of the last group of migrants.
A farmer brings his dismantled TV antenna equipment with him as he leaves Jinhe. Nearly all material goods, with even the slightest bit of worth, were carted away; little was left behind.
Under banners that read “Wholeheartedly Support Relocation” and “Strengthen Your Awareness to Serve Migrants to Fulfill Relevant Departments’ Responsibilities in Relocation,” a farmer pulls his belongings in a handcart to load them on a truck to transport them to his new home.
Before departing, a family bids farewell to their ancestors who are buried here.
Some of the farmers board a bus to leave their homes and the village of Jinhe.
