A report last year by the Development and Research Center, which is responsible to the State Council, said the problem of emptiness and destitution in central and western rural areas is widespread and has become the focus of social governance.

A netizen with the user name haoqixin2015 wrote on Sina Weibo, "In Zhang Zixin's case, both the grandparents and the girl belonged to disadvantaged groups who are vulnerable to tricksters and are at risk."

In Hangzhou, the women's federation and the city's Communist Youth League jointly issued an emergency notice on Monday calling for enhanced "security training" for the left-behind population in rural areas in an attempt to close any loopholes in rural governance.

Main information source

Meanwhile, establishing a well-informed countryside has emerged as a key task for suburban areas.

Earlier this year, an investigation by the Shanghai news, travel and entertainment portal eastday.com found that of 300 villagers interviewed in Zhangma village, only 60 km from the city's downtown, just 21 had downloaded apps to check the latest news.

The investigation also found that in suburban Shanghai, television is still the main information source for villagers, who also prefer to use cheap smartphones. Few of them intend to download news apps.

The survey concluded that elderly people in rural areas lack the desire to acquire information through smartphones, and have no ability to obtain information and news on their own initiative.