GUIYANG, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, on Wednesday inspected southwest China's Guizhou Province ahead of the Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year.

Xi went to Qianxi County in the city of Bijie, where he inspected the ecological environment of a major tributary of Wujiang River.

He also visited a village in an ethnic Miao township. On the village's public square, Xi talked to villagers who were participating in festive activities, and extended his New Year's greetings to people of all ethnic groups across the country.

The Spring Festival falls on Feb. 12 this year.