BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping on Sunday said he has been very concerned about Yushu, a prefecture in Northwest China's Qinghai province hit by a strong earthquake about 11 years ago, and is pleased to hear its rapid development after the quake.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks when he joined a deliberation with lawmakers from the Qinghai delegation at the annual session of the National People's Congress, or the top legislature, in Beijing.

"I have been paying attention to Yushu's post-quake recovery all these years," Xi said, applauding local efforts to coordinate ecological protection, economic development and the improvement of people's livelihood.

Xi expressed the hope that Yushu would continue this path of development.

On April 14, 2010, a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Yushu, flattening the plateau town of Gyegu and killing more than 2,600 people.

Xi went to Yushu after the quake to visit the disaster-hit local residents and inspected post-quake recovery efforts.