HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội will reorganise the system of loudspeakers at the ward level in July, chairman of the city’s People’s Committee Nguyễn Đức Chung said on Wednesday.

Accordingly, loudspeakers will be limited in four inner districts - Hoàn Kiếm, Ba Đình, Hai Bà Trưng and Đống Đa. There will be three to five loudspeakers in each district to be placed at important locations, not for information dissemination purposes but to serve urgent tasks.

The reduction of loudspeakers in the four inner districts is attributed to the improved living conditions and the development of transmission systems, TV, broadcasting and telephones.

No more than 10 loudspeakers will be placed in the districts of Hoàng Mai, Hà Đông, Long Biên and Cầu Giấy, as well as Bắc Từ Liêm, Nam Từ Liêm and Tây Hồ.

In other districts and towns, the loudspeaker system will be maintained and gradually modernised.

The city’s authorities have planned to step up the construction of a smart city by modernising the infrastructure, harnessing the Internet and using computers for management and information exchange to maximise conveniences for locals.

Once the system is completed, the city is aiming at home-based payments for electricity, water, tuition fee and newspaper.

Earlier this year, the People’s Committee chairman asked concerned agencies to assess the necessity of using loudspeakers in all communes and wards. The city has 584 commune-level administrative units, including 386 communes, 177 wards and 21 towns. Loudspeakers cost each unit a few hundred million Vietnamese đồng annually.

The poll was conducted amidst controversial opinions over the need for loudspeakers, which were used to raise an alarm before bombing raids during wartime. Today,they are used to relay news, songs and information at dawn and dusk. — VNS