Universities open subsidies for students affected by earthquake

Many domestic universities have opened up special subsidy channels for students from the earthquake-hit areas in Xizang autonomous region.

As of 3 pm on Tuesday, a total of 95 individuals have been confirmed dead and 130 others injured following a 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Dingri county in Shigatse, Xizang autonomous region at 9:05 am on Tuesday, according to a news briefing conducted by the county's authorities on the ongoing rescue efforts.

In Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, Sun Yat-sen University said it is now paying close attention to the situation in the disaster-stricken areas and revealed the students in financial difficulties in the process of applying for the subsidies.

The university said it has been ready to provide assistance to the students in need and the students can consult and apply for the subsidies through the various channels, including email and phone hotlines, the university said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Student Financial Assistance Management Center of South China University of Technology, also located in Guangzhou, said if the students' families suffer temporary financial difficulties due to personal injury or property damage caused by earthquakes or other disasters, they can apply for family disaster relief subsidies in the online service hall of the university's Student and Teacher Service Center.

Similar measures targeted at students whose families would be affected by the earthquake have been adopted in many domestic universities such as the China Agricultural University and Beijing Normal University and Lanzhou University in Gansu province.

In Shanghai, major universities, including Fudan University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Tongji University, and several universities and colleges in Sichuan have been ready to help and subsidize the students from the quake-hit areas in Xizang.