North Korea is accelerating the development of its county of Samjiyon, where Korea's highest mountain is located, under the direction of its leader Kim Jong-un, a report by the communist country's main newspaper said Monday.

   The Rodong Sinmun, the organ of the ruling Workers' Party, reported that Kim instructed the development of the northern area of Ryanggang Province near Mt. Paektu, which is claimed by the North to be the sacred origin point of the Korean revolution.

   Pyongyang has claimed that the revolutionary tradition of the "Paektu bloodline," which refers to the descendants of North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, including his son, Kim Jong-il, and the current leader.

   The three are revered as the immortal lifeline of the Korean revolution.

   According to the latest report, Kim Jong-un, who took power after the death of his father Kim Jong-il in late 2011, assigned the members of the "youth shock brigade" to launch an ideological campaign for the construction of the Samjiyon area.

   The youth shock brigade members belong to the North's Kim Il-sung Socialist Youth League in which millions of young North Koreans are associated.

   The Rodong Sinmun said that the headquarters of the youth league has finished all preparations for the supply of materials necessary for the development of the county, adding that the holy area will be reborn in a few years.

   The newspaper also said the youth members have already begun embankment construction of the rivers and streams in the mountainous region while engaging in logging and road construction.

   Earlier in April, Kim Jong-un visited the newly constructed Paektusan Hero Youth Power Station No. 3 in the county, where he said the power station will demonstrate the "indomitable mental power and spirit of young Koreans."

   North Korea watchers here said that the North's emphasis on the development of Samjiyon is aimed to justify the hereditary power succession of the Paektu bloodline. (Yonhap)