China News Agency, Harbin, June 6th: China's only special train for college entrance examination in 19 years of operation is suspended
China News Agency reporter Shi Yifu
It's the college entrance examination season again. On the 6th, Dayangshu Station in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region was different from the liveliness of previous years and seemed a little deserted.
The only special train for the college entrance examination in China that has traveled between Dayangshu and Ali River for 19 consecutive years has withdrawn from the historical stage this year.
Cheng Xianmin, the passenger transport director who has served the college entrance examination train for 19 years, said: "The college entrance examination train is a bridge connecting dreams in the minds of candidates. Although the car has stopped, the service concept will continue."
The deserted Big Poplar Station.
Photo courtesy of Harbin Railway
Dayangshu Town, Oroqen Autonomous Banner, Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is located at the southern foot of the Daxing'an Mountains.
Since the college entrance examination center must be set in the location of the flag (county), candidates in Dayangshu Town must go to Alihe Town, 135 kilometers away, to take the college entrance examination.
Due to the inconvenience of transportation, candidates and their parents have to change cars and trains many times to reach the test center, which is extremely inconvenient to travel for the test.
Since 2003, in order to solve the problems of difficult travel and high transportation costs for candidates in ethnic areas, China Railway Harbin Bureau Group Co., Ltd. has opened a special train for the college entrance examination to Alihe test center at Dayangshu Station, where candidates are concentrated.
In the past 19 years, the special train for the college entrance examination has transported more than 34,000 candidates and their parents to and from, among which more than 7,000 graduates were admitted to Xiamen University, Inner Mongolia University and other institutions of higher learning.
Many students who took the special train for the college entrance examination returned from graduation and worked as teachers, conductors, and self-employed businesses in Dayangshu Town to support their hometowns. Meng Li is one of them.
The bustling Dayangshu Station in previous years.
Photo courtesy of Harbin Railway
In the past 19 years, the special train for the college entrance examination has been continuously upgraded. Li Baifang, a teacher from Dayangshu Town No. 2 Middle School, was very emotional: "In 2003, when the special train for the college entrance examination first started, it was a green leather car, which was cooled by fans. The train staff performed songs and allegro to cheer the candidates; In 2018, the green leather car was upgraded to an air-conditioned car; in 2019, the train staff took a camera to take and print the 'special car graduation photo' for the candidates and passengers."
The new crown pneumonia epidemic hit in 2020, in order to ensure that the special train for the college entrance examination runs as scheduled, the Harbin Bureau Group Co., Ltd. connected with the school 3 months in advance to understand the number of candidates and parents traveling, deliver tickets to the door in advance, select an air-conditioned car body, and dispatch young flight attendants to take on the work of flight attendants , while doing a good job in the disinfection and epidemic prevention of train compartments, we also prepared small gifts such as epidemic prevention love boxes, commemorative tickets, pencil bags and other small gifts for each candidate on the train, and carefully crafted themes including the review of the past years, messages from teachers and students, etc. The commemorative book is given to candidates for free.
On April 14, 2022, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Admissions and Examination Committee approved the establishment of the "Oroqen Autonomous Banner Dayangshu No. 2 Middle School College Entrance Examination Center".
The Qi government invested 1.53 million yuan (RMB, the same below) to build a new standardized college entrance examination center and test paper secret room. The Qi Education and Sports Bureau and Dayangshu No. 2 Middle School invested 500,000 yuan to paint the examination room and equip it with relevant facilities and equipment.
At present, the newly constructed Dayangshu No. 2 Middle School has 28 standardized test rooms, each of which can accommodate 30 candidates, for a total of 810 candidates.
On June 7, 440 students from Dayangshu No. 2 Middle School in 2019 will take the college entrance examination on the spot.
The special train for the college entrance examination has withdrawn from the historical stage, but the public welfare slow train has not ended.
In forest areas, reclamation areas and other places, the Harbin Railway Department reserves 9 public welfare slow trains to meet the travel needs of the people, and at the same time uses the station and train resources to organically combine with local industry development, agricultural education assistance, tourism development, etc., to accurately assist rural areas. Revitalize.
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