XI'AN -- Legislative measures will be put in place to preserve Qinqiang Opera, a genre of Chinese folk opera, in Northwest China's Shaanxi province.

A regulation on the preservation, inheritance, and development of Qinqiang Opera was approved Friday by the Standing Committee of the 13th Shaanxi Provincial People's Congress, the provincial legislature.

According to the regulation, culture and tourism authorities at or above the county level are required to organize general surveys on the art resources of Qinqiang Opera. They should also collect, rescue, and preserve archives, oral history, and related precious objects with historical and artistic value.

The classic and traditional plays on the verge of extinction should be explored, sorted out, revised, and performed, it said.

To promote innovative development of the art, the regulation also encourages Qinqiang Opera troupes to strengthen cooperation with online platforms, build online and digital theaters, and produce animations, films, and television dramas suitable for online performances.

The regulation will go into effect from Jan 1, 2022.

Qinqiang Opera, which thrives in China's northwestern areas of Gansu, Shaanxi, Qinghai, Ningxia, and Xinjiang, was added to the country's list of intangible heritage in 2006.