Whether households in China's southern regions are provided with heat in winter should not be an issue. How they are should be.

The recent establishment of a research group by the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner, on winter heating in the south is the government's positive response to the recently intensified debate over whether residents in southern regions should enjoy a cozy temperature indoors during the cold season.

According to data from the China Meteorological Administration in January, the average temperature nationwide has plunged to -3.8 degrees C since November, the lowest in 28 years. Many regions in the south have experienced their lowest temperatures for decades.