South Korea on Tuesday picked four areas in the central part of the country as the candidate sites for its new administrative capital to replace Seoul, according to Yonhap.

The four locations are the Eumseong-Jincheon area in North Chungcheong Province, and Cheonan, the Yeongi-Gongju region and the Gongju-Nonsan area.

The new capital, whose construction is scheduled to start in 2007 for completion in 2030, would have a population of around 500,000 and house 85 key administrative, legislative and judiciary agencies.

The selection comes amid a sizzling debate over the feasibility of capital relocation, one of President Roh Moo-hyun's pledges during the 2002 presidential campaign.

The governing Uri Party and residents in the Chungcheong provinces back the planned movement, which President Roh said would help decentralize the Seoul metropolitan area and promote more balanced regional development.

Buoyed by his promise to move the administrative capital to their region, Chungcheong residents delivered swing votes to Roh, who beat opposition candidate Lee Hoi-chang by a razor-thin margin.

The main opposition Grand National Party and local governments in and around Seoul are adamantly against it, saying the relocation would "hollow out" the metropolitan area.

Also disputed is how to bankroll the mammoth project. The capital transfer is estimated to cost as much as 45.6 trillion won(39.17 billion dollars).

Given those factors, opponents demand a national referendum before the government pursues the project any further.

Brushing aside the demand, the Roh administration is determined to push ahead with capital relocation, saying the National Assembly has already approved it.

In late December, the legislature passed a special law on capital relocation, clearing the way for the government to start the project.

Source: Xinhua