calendar>>January 27. 2023 Juche 112

Korean People's Spirit Displayed in 1960s and 70s

Pyongyang, January 27 (KCNA) -- The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, in his report at the Sixth Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, ardently called upon the workers, scientists and technicians in core sectors for the successful development of the national economy to overcome the difficulties facing the revolution by their own efforts, holding high the fighting spirit and banner of the 1960s and 70s once again.

The 1960s and 70s are the era when the Korean people had dynamically paved the road of advance for socialist construction their own way and by their own efforts under the leadership of the great Party. This is the precious memory of the Korean people.

In retrospect, all the miracles and changes made by the Korean people in the era were the proud fruition of independence in politics, self-sustenance in the economy and self-reliance in national defence. They made a miracle of completing within 14 years the industrialization, carried out by others century after century, and raised the fierce flames of grand socialist construction in the spirit of Chollima with speed campaign. This is the fruition of the might of self-reliance, their own efforts.

The workers of Kangson worked a miracle of producing 120,000 tons of rolled steel at the blooming mill with a capacity of 60,000 tons in 1957, bearing in their mind the trust shown by President Kim Il Sung. In the 1960s, they produced rolled steel 7.5 times more than the rated capacity, thus amazing the world again.

Thanks to the devoted efforts of the agricultural workers who turned out in the drive to expand the irrigated area to one million hectares in hearty response to the Party's call, many reservoirs, pumping stations and other irrigation facilities were put into operation within six months. As a result, waterways extending tens of thousands of ri (10 ri equal to 4kms) were newly built in the countryside, and grain production increased by 16 percent in 1967 as against the previous year and 111 percent in 1968 as compared with 1967 despite flooding and drought.

In the 1970s, the workers of Ryongsong manufactured 20-meter lathe and 18-meter turning lathe, contributing to the development of the independent industry of the country. In the field of railway transport, a new record of overhaul was made by a locomotive engineer in his 30s.

The DPRK's gross industrial output value increased 3.5 times in the four years 1957-1960 and its industrial output grew at a high rate of 15.9 percent annually in 1970-1979.

Today the Korean people are working hard to become performers of miracles and feats in the grandiose creation struggle for the overall development of socialist construction in the same spirit and mettle displayed by the preceding generations.