Crackdown on illegal press IDs

A two-month campaign to confiscate the press cards of people who are not working as journalists will begin on Jan 15, the General Administration of Press and Publication said on Tuesday. All media outlets will have to thoroughly check the status of press card holders "one by one" to determine whether administrative personnel, advertising agents or other people illegally possess press cards.

Solar power capacity may rise

China may almost double its upper limit for solar power installed capacity to 40 gigawatts by 2015 from the current 21 gW, an industry insider said. The exact figure is yet to be determined, said Meng Xiangan, deputy board chairman of the Chinese Renewable Energy Society.

Sports facilities to be expanded

China has vowed to increase the nation's expanse of public sporting areas to 1.5 square meters per person by 2015, according to a five-year plan released on Monday. Under the plan drafted by the National Development and Reform Commission and the General Administration of Sport, China will construct more public sports facilities in the next three years to guarantee people's right to exercise and encourage them to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Project to train social workers

China plans to place more social workers in child welfare institutions, and test projects will kick off in four provinces. In cooperation with CIAI, an Italian adoption agency, the China Center for Children's Welfare and Adoption launched a project in Beijing on Tuesday called Children's Social Work. The project aims to train more social workers to work for child welfare institutions.

Taiwan

Media veterans start on trip

A group of senior journalists from the mainland kicked off a 10-day visit to Taiwan on Monday, at the invitation of Taiwan's United Daily News Group. Led by Wang Qiu, China National Radio president, the group comprises officials from media outlets on the mainland, including the People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency, China Central Television, China Radio International, China News Service and China Daily.

Mainland visits to island hit record

The number of visitors from the mainland to Taiwan hit a record high in the first 11 months of 2012, new data have showed. According to statistics released on Tuesday by the National Tourism Administration, tourists from the mainland made over 1.8 million visits to Taiwan from January to November, up 60.6 percent year-on-year. Of all the trips, 1.64 million were made by group travelers, and 159,000 by individuals, the administration said.

Hunan

5 dead, 4 missing in ferry accident

Five people have been confirmed dead and another four are missing after a ferry capsized on Sunday morning in Hunan province, local authorities said on Tuesday. The ferry, which was carrying four vehicles and 12 people, capsized around 3:40 am in waters off the village of Pingshan, Anhua county, according to a county spokesman. Three passengers, including the ferry owner, have been rescued.

Former official tried for graft

A former official in Hunan province stood trial on Monday for corruption, local media reported on Tuesday. Gu Xiangling, 49, former director of the infrastructure construction bureau of Changsha, Hunan province, took bribes 344 times from 49 people and, in return, helped many real estate developers acquire permission for construction, the prosecutor said on Monday at Hengyang People's Court.

Heilongjiang

Mine flooding death toll rises

Two more bodies were retrieved 10 days after a coal mine flooded in Heilongjiang province, bringing the death toll from the accident to eight, rescuers said on Tuesday. Rescuers recovered the two bodies around 1:10 pm on Tuesday. Rescue operations to find two other missing people are ongoing. Twenty-two miners were working underground at the Furuixiang Coal Mine in Qitaihe when it flooded on Dec 1.

Shandong

Power failure behind accident

A fishing boat accident that killed one person and left nine missing in Shandong province was caused by a power failure, local maritime authorities said on Tuesday. The boat, Lurongyu-0911, sank on Saturday morning in waters about 111 km east of Weihai. Its captain was rescued, while nine others remain missing.

Guangdong

Guangzhou offers green car subsidy

Guangzhou rolled out its new-energy vehicle subsidy policies on Monday, as the city became the first to officially introduce such incentives nationally. Effective from December, energy-saving car buyers are entitled to a 10,000 yuan ($1,605) rebate from the municipal government, according to the website of the Guangzhou small and medium-sized passenger car control administration office.

Shaanxi

7 detained over 'doomsday' rumors

Seven people who distributed "doomsday" leaflets on a bus were detained by police in Huanglong county, Shaanxi province, Xi'an Evening News reported on Tuesday. Han Baolong, a local farmer, took a bus on Saturday and saw the people distributing the leaflets. He reported the incident to police, who detained them for disturbing the social order by spreading rumors.

Tianjin

Sanitation goes environmental

Tianjin will invest 200 million yuan ($28.56 million) to update or introduce environmentally friendly cleaning facilities to beautify the city, Metro Express reported. The report said that 149 kinds of cleaning facilities have been included in the city's recommendation directory for environmental sanitation and landscape products.

China Daily - Xinhua