BEIJING, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday earmarked another 150 million yuan (about 21.7 million U.S. dollars) from its central natural-disaster relief funds to further support rescue and relief work in southwest China's Sichuan Province after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Luding County on Monday.

Jointly allocated by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Ministry of Emergency Management, the funds will be used for emergency rescue and assistance, focusing on searching, rescuing and relocating the disaster-stricken people, compensating the victims, eliminating dangers and detecting secondary disaster risks, as well as repairing damaged housing, according to a statement on the website of the MOF.

The two authorities allocated 50 million yuan of earthquake rescue and relief funds to Sichuan Province on Monday following the earthquake.

The MOF required the local financial authority to allocate the funds to earthquake-stricken areas quickly, strengthen fund management and closely track the local situation, in order to fully protect people and their property.