People of all ethnic groups in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region have been tirelessly working on the efficient and scientific use of water resources to support high-quality development, political adviser Mei Yu said during an interview in the members' passage at the ongoing two sessions on Thursday.

Mei, who is also the director of the regional water resources department, said Xinjiang is unique in terms of its water resources. As an inland arid region, Xinjiang's water content per unit area is only 51,000 cubic meters, accounting for one-sixth of the national average, he said.

Access to water is extremely challenging for the 116 herders living one particular village in the Tashikurgan Tajik autonomous county of Kashgar prefecture. They have to travel several kilometers to reach the river in summer and drink ice-melt water in winter, he said.

"When I visited the village, they pointed to the water tap and told me it was their most precious possession," Mei said.

In 2018, the local government invested some 13 million yuan ($1.8 million) to solve water safety issues in the village, with the investment per household exceeding 110,000 yuan, he added.

The regional government has ramped up its efforts to solve the "last mile" of drinking water in rural and pastoral areas that encounter similar challenges.

Since the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), more than 1,400 projects to upgrade drinking water have been implemented in Xinjiang, Mei said.

Qitai county in Xinjiang faces severe water shortages, but it is also a key county for national grain production. With intelligent online operations for irrigation and fertilization, Yaozhanzi village in the county has achieved record-high grain yields, Mei said.

Xinjiang has built over 4.13 million hectares of highly efficient, water-saving irrigation systems, surpassing the national average. And last year, the region topped the country in terms of the increase in the planting area and grain production, he added.