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Beijing plans to control the size of its population and to have no more than 23 million people by 2020, said a national legislator and senior Beijing official on Friday. 全国人大代表、北京市常务副市长李士祥本周五透露，北京市将控制人口规模，到2020年，北京市人口将控制在2300万。 Beijing municipal deputy mayor Li Shixiang, also a deputy to the nation's top legislature, revealed the figure during a group discussion at the ongoing "two sessions". It is the first time that the Chinese capital put forward a new target after its population grew much faster than expected. 李士祥在参加两会北京代表团分组讨论时透露了这一数字。这是在北京市人口规模增速超出预期后，首次提出的控制人口新目标。 In 2005, the State Council, or China's cabinet, set the goal of having a total of 18 million people for Beijing in 2020. 2005年，国务院制定的目标为2020年将北京市人口规模控制在1800万人。 Currently, the city's population has surged to 21.54 million and the city will allow a small rise to no more than 21.8 million by the end of the year. 目前，北京市人口规模已上升至2154万，北京市今年的控制目标为2180万。 The targeted population of 23 million was calculated based on the capability of the city's water resources to support its residents, according to the deputy mayor, as the South-to-North Water Diversion project has not brought a fundamental change to improve the water shortage situation. | 
