82-year-old official works for 36 years on drought village water project

Huang Dafa, the canal builder of Caowangba village.

Hidden deep in the mountains in Guizhou Province flows Dafa canal, which brings water and hope to the residents of Caowangba village.

Huang Dafa, a former official of Caowangba, with the help of the villagers constructed the canal over 36 years.  Before the canal, the villagers could only live on potatoes and corn, as there was no water for other crops. Rice was a luxury only available during Spring Festival. Besides that, they had no electricity and no decent roads.

Huang found that Yebiao village, a few kilometers away, had water to spare. Although some people said that Caowangba would never get access to water, Huang never lost hope. From 1992, Huang led 200 people in digging the canal.

The canal was finally completed in 1995. With enough water, people started to change their non-irrigated farmland to grow rice. In the same year, the village was connected to electricity and a new road was built. 

All three projects were led by Huang. 

However, now in his eighties Huang still checks the canal regularly to make sure it is working well.

Huang once said: "I decided to do three things for the villagers: draw water to the village, build a road and get access to electricity." He kept his promises for as long as 36 years and finally delivered them.