Beijing

Xi lauds official who died in accident

President Xi Jinping praised a late county official for his strong ties with the people and devotion to his work, according to an official release on Monday. Lan Hui, who was deputy head of the Beichuan Qiang autonomous county in Sichuan province, fell off a cliff and died while inspecting a rural road on May 23. He was 48. Xi called on officials to learn from Lan's positive traits.

Higher food safety standards urged

Food safety authorities have been urged to better supervise food safety standards. In a document issued on Monday, the National Health and Family Planning Commission called for local health departments to study and evaluate local food safety standards, especially standards on the registration of food-producing enterprises.

Gasoline, diesel prices to rise

Drivers will have to pay more for fuel amid the country's drive to reduce air pollution through upgraded fuel quality. In the next two years, the price of gasoline and diesel fuel that meet the national "fourth phase" standard will be raised by 290 yuan ($47.40) per metric ton and 370 yuan per ton, the National Reform and Development Commission, the country's top economic planner, said on Monday.

Show to promote welfare programs

A TV program to highlight the development of grassroots NGOs and promote new public welfare programs was announced by the Phoenix Television and the China Foundation For Poverty Alleviation on Monday. The one-hour program will be broadcast at 7 pm every Saturday beginning on Oct 12.

Gansu

Student released after online post

A middle school student was released by police on Monday morning after being detained for seven days for writing an online post. The 16-year-old boy, named Yang and who is from Zhangjiachuan county, was taken into custody on Sept 17 after police claimed he had encouraged others to protest against a police report regarding a man's death. The police said that the man, named Gao, died after falling from a building on the morning of Sept 12. Yang accused the police of falsifying the report in his online post. The police released him because he is a minor and has expressed regret for his conduct, the Gansu Provincial Department of Public Security said.

Jiangxi

Girls killed in washing machine

Two girls, aged 2 and 4, died after they climbed into a washing machine, which may run automatically after its lid is closed. The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon at their home in Nanchang. The girls' father was watching TV in the bedroom and their mother was cooking when the incident occurred, People's Daily reported. The couple saw a chair was placed near the washing machine.

Shandong

11 Foxconn workers injured in brawl

Eleven workers at a Foxconn plant in Yantai were injured during a brawl, the company said on Monday. The incident occurred on Thursday night when two groups of workers who were celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival had a dispute after drinking, Foxconn said in its micro blog.

Henan

Suspect arrested over death of boy

Police have arrested a suspect who they say killed a 9-year-old boy on Friday. The boy's body was found in a river at about 3 am on Saturday in Yuzhou. The boy had more than 100 knife wounds, Dahe Daily reported. A video clip from a community security camera showed the boy being taken by a young man into a house.

Sichuan

British Airways launches route

Nine months after British Airways announced it would launch a nonstop route between London and Chengdu, the airline's long-range Boeing 777-200 officially landed at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport on Monday. Britain has long been one of the most popular tourist destinations for Chinese tourists from the Chengdu region.

China Daily-Xinhua

(China Daily USA 09/24/2013 page2)