BEIJING, Jan 7 (AFP) - Residents in state-subsidised housing in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou could be evicted if caught spitting or dropping cigarette butts too often, under a draft proposal unveiled this week.

The proposed penalty system has been designed to "build a civilised, hygienic, safe and harmonious community environment", the Guangzhou Land Resources and Management Bureau said in a statement posted on its website.

Residents would be penalised three points for offences such as spitting, building greenhouses to grow flowers and vegetables, parking illegally and drying their laundry on fences.

More serious offences such as unsafe storage of "flammable, explosive, poisonous, radioactive and other hazardous materials" would carry higher penalties, according to the draft plan.

Residents who accumulated more than 20 points within a two-year period would be thrown out of their homes.

The government said it was seeking public feedback on the proposal before implementing it.