17 miners killed in gas explosion

Seventeen people have been confirmed dead after a coal mine accident in Fuyuan county in Yunnan province on Wednesday, said the local government. At 2:15 pm, there was a gas explosion in a shaft of the Shangchang Coal Mine in Huangnihe township of Fuyuan, said the press office of the county government. Of the 66 miners in the mine at the time, 49 escaped unscathed, according to a preliminary investigation.

Measures to lift border economy

Authorities have formulated 10 measures to shore up the development of cross-border economic cooperation zones in a bid to lift China's opening-up in border areas, a senior official said on Wednesday. Wang Chao, vice-minister of commerce, unveiled the package on such zones at a working conference in Kunming, Southwest China's Yunnan province.

Beijing

Red Cross to recruit more volunteers

The Red Cross Society of China will improve its volunteer system in a bid to encourage more volunteers, the society said in a news conference on Wednesday, International Volunteer Day. Zhao Baige, executive vice-president of the society, said it will make full use of volunteers' professional skills and strengthen the capabilities of volunteers at the grassroots level.

China, ROK eye Web cooperation

The first Internet round table between China and the Republic of Korea opened in Beijing on Wednesday. Representatives from the two countries will discuss the Internet economy, network infrastructure construction and cybercrime at the two-day conference. Wang Chen, minister of the State Internet Information Office of the State Council, said in his keynote speech that China and the ROK share broad interests in Internet cooperation.

Panchen Lama receives scholars

The 11th Panchen Lama conducted a ritual with Tibetan Buddhism scholars, all monks at the High-level Tibetan Buddhism College of China, in Beijing on Wednesday. Eleven of the monks in attendance graduated from the school on Tuesday, receiving the "Tho Ram Pa" degree, one of the highest academic degrees in Tibetan Buddhism.

Manager apologizes for racy Net photos

A manager of China Petrochemical Corp, also known as Sinopec, apologized to the public on Wednesday after inappropriate photos showing him with a female subordinate appeared online, China.com.cn reported. The official, surnamed Lai, is the head of the distribution center of Sinopec's branch in Henan province. On Tuesday, more than 40 photos of the official and a female subordinate were posted on the Internet.

Guangdong

Library makes rare books available

The Sun Yat-sen Library of Guangdong province has made available to the public its collections of ancient rare books, China News Service reported on Tuesday. Readers can't take the rare books out of the library, but they can make photocopies or take photos. The library has one of the largest collections of ancient literature and of Sun Yat-sen's writings in the country.

Shanxi

Probe over 'toxic chicken' disclosed

The Department of Agriculture in Shanxi province has denied media reports that a local company providing chickens to KFC fed the birds toxic additives, Xinhua reported. Media reports recently revealed that Suhai company, a local supplier for the chicken-restaurant chain, has been raising chickens with industrial chemicals to provide a chicken big enough for slaughter in 45 days. However, after a series of investigations, the department said it has found that Suhai's feed complies with government standards.

Tianjin

City assists migrant workers

The Tianjin municipal government has launched a 60-day inspection campaign to ensure migrant workers get paid on time before Spring Festival, local media reported.

The campaign, an initiative of the city labor bureau and five other departments, will supervise construction sites, manufacturing plants, restaurants, labor-intensive companies and private enterprises that employ large numbers of migrant workers.

Jiangsu

Official encourages netizens to talk

A senior official of the discipline inspection department in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, met with netizens on Tuesday and told them he uses micro blogs to get information and communicate with the public, Yangtze Evening News reported. Long Xiang, chief of the city's disciplinary department, gave his cell phone number to netizens at the media open day so they can contact him directly.

Gansu

Mayor investigated over luxury watches

An investigation of the mayor of Lanzhou is under way in Gansu province after a blogger posted online photos of the official wearing at least five luxury watches, Xinhua News Agency reported. Zhou Lubao, a blogger and former reporter, said Mayor Yuan Zhanting was seen wearing various different luxury watches, including one that costs more than 200,000 yuan ($32,120) and another worth at least 150,000 yuan.

Shaanxi

Ex-head of county land bureau busted

An official of Ningqiang county, in Hanzhong, Shaanxi province, has been arrested on suspicion of corruption, the Hanzhong city procurator's office confirmed to China Daily. The county official, Zhou Xuanzhao, was former head of the county's land bureau. Online posts suggested that Zhou was investigated for corruption involving some 10 million yuan ($1.61 million).

Xinhua-Agencies