URUMQI, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region plans to build 210,700 houses for underprivileged people in 2019, authorities said Thursday at the ongoing session of the People's Congress of the region.

Xinjiang began rural house construction last year and has since renovated more than 470,000 houses in shanty towns, and constructed more than 280,000 subsidized houses for impoverished people in rural areas, including 68,900 new houses in the 22 most poverty-stricken counties in the south part of the region.

The region will continue constructing new houses for low and medium income residents, and promoting the healthy development of the real estate industry, said Shohrat Zakir, chairman of the Xinjiang regional government.