Guangdong

Air quality worse in province: survey

A recent survey has found that nearly 50 percent of the urban residents in Guangdong province think the air quality in the urban areas is worsening. More than 38 percent of urban residents said they feel sick or uncomfortable due to the poor air quality, according to the survey, which was released on Thursday. The survey, which was conducted by the Guangzhou Public Opinion Research Center in March, interviewed 2,000 urban residents in the southern province.

Beijing

Will-registration program offered

The first non-profit will-registration program in China is being offered to Beijing residents, the co-organizers announced on Thursday. The program provides free willlegistration, storage as well as delivery for people over the age of 60. Organized by the China Aging Development Foundation and Beijing Sunny Senior Health Foundation, the Happy Message program opened its first registration center in Beijing.

Charges to download music

Downloading online music will cease to be free in China as of July, according to the well-known composer Gao Xiaosong. Gao said Internet users will have to start paying to download music on July 1, according to a report on China.com.cn, a website under the State Council Information Office. He said many record companies, large Internet enterprises and related government administrations are finalizing work for the move.

Consortium to promote ecology

To prompt the development of an eco-civilization and alleviate poverty, the Global Consortium for Eco-civilization Scientists Union was established in Beijing, with more than 100 scientists from home and abroad attending on March 21. Wang Wenbiao, chairman of the China Elion Foundation and founder of the organization, said improving air quality and controlling sand and dust have become key parts of building an eco-civilized nation and easing public concern.

IPR protection boosted in 2012

Authorities said on Thursday that the country strengthened intellectual property rights protection in 2012, with courts handling more IPR-related cases and police cracking down on violations involving billions of US dollars. Courts received 87,419 IPR-related civil cases last year, up 45.99 percent year-on-year, according to data released by a state IPR work group involving 28 government departments.

More overseas students return

A total of 272,900 Chinese students returned home after completing their education abroad in 2012, up 46.6 percent from 2011, a senior human resources official said on Thursday. Since China's reform and opening-up began in 1978, 1.09 million Chinese students who studied abroad have returned home, Yin Weimin, minister of human resources and social security, said.

16,600 arrested in drug crackdown

Police nationwide uncovered 14,000 drug-related cases, arrested 16,600 suspects, and seized 6.92 tons of drugs between Jan 24 and March 15, the National Narcotics Control Commission said in a statement on Thursday. The commission said the country is facing a tough task in its fight against drugs, particularly from the international drug trade. There were 2 million registered drug addicts in the country at the end of 2012.

Shanghai

Two held on smuggling charges

Two Chinese air passengers have been arrested in Shanghai for smuggling rhinoceros horns, ivory and related products weighing 55 kg, the city's customs authority said on Wednesday. While screening luggage from a plane that arrived from France in January, customs officials found 11 pieces of rhinoceros horn along with 36 pieces of ivory, with an estimated total value of 5 million yuan ($800,000).

Yunan

County fights crayfish invasion

The terraced fields in Yuanyang county, Yunnan province, which have a history of more than 1,300 years are being threatened by an invasion of crayfish.The local government has allocated 1.1 million yuan ($177,000) a year since 2012 to buy pesticide to fight the invasion. It also issued rules stating that crayfish farming is not allowed in the terraced fields, and that no crayfish should be sold in the county.

Xinhua - China Daily

(China Daily 03/22/2013 page2)