Faster services to cover most users

More than 70 percent of China's Internet users will enjoy access to broadband Internet in 2013, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Tuesday. The percentage of users with access to 4M or faster services climbed 23 percentage points to 63 percent in 2012 from the previous year, said Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology.

PLA plans drills to boost readiness

The People's Liberation Army will conduct 40 military exercises in 2013 to improve its combat ability, according to the Military Training Department of the PLA General Staff Headquarters. A statement released on Tuesday by the department said the PLA will put China's core security-related interests in a more prominent position and will strengthen live ammunition and confrontation exercises. The exercises are aimed at improving the army's combat readiness and helping soldiers be fully prepared.

Approvals for small mines to be halted

China's safety watchdog said it will no longer approve new coal mines that do not meet production capacity requirements in 2013 to ensure work safety. High-gas coal mines with an annual production of less than 300,000 metric tons, as well as coal and gas outburst mines with an annual production of less than 450,000 tons, will not be approved, the State Administration of Work Safety said on Monday.

Stealth frigate delivered to navy

China's first Type 056 stealth frigate was delivered to the Chinese People's Liberation Army navy in Shanghai on Monday. The new generation of frigate, which is about to be put into service on a large scale, features good stealth performance and electromagnetic compatibility, according to a report released on Tuesday by PLA Daily. The new frigate requires only one-third of the crew needed by its predecessor.

Scientists decipher bamboo genome

Chinese scientists have decoded the genome for moso bamboo in hopes of improving the breed and using the plant as an alternative to wood. China, the world's biggest grower and user of bamboo, has 3.86 million hectares of moso bamboo, accounting for 72 percent of the country's bamboo-planting area.

Ministry monitors price decline

Farm produce prices in China's 36 major cities saw a general decline last week following the Spring Festival holiday, according to a Ministry of Commerce survey on Tuesday. The average wholesale price of 18 monitored vegetables declined 7 percent month-on-month from Feb 18 to Sunday, while eight aquatic produce items dipped 0.9 percent, the ministry's report said.

Guizhou

Minibus blast kills 1, injures 2

One person was killed and two others injured on Monday in a minibus blast in Guizhou province, local government sources said. The incident occurred around 9 pm when the minibus exploded in Shiqing village, Zhouxi township, said a spokesman for the city government of Kaili. The injured were taken to a hospital. They are expected to recover, the spokesman said.

7 die after vehicle plunges off cliff

Seven people have been confirmed dead and two others injured after a minibus drove off a mountain highway in Guizhou province on Tuesday, local police said. The minibus carrying nine passengers plunged about 250 meters off a cliff in Libo county, the Qiannan Bouyei-Miao autonomous prefecture, at 2:10 am on Tuesday.

Shandong

Freighter fire claims 1, 15 rescued

One crew member was killed when a freighter caught fire off the coast of East China on Sunday, while 15 others were rescued. The fire on the Hua Shan, a Panama-registered freighter, was put out by the Qingdao fire department by 5 pm on Monday. The freighter was carrying 4,000 metric tons of coal to the Port of Rizhao in Shandong.

Shaanxi

Palace maids cemetery unearthed

A public cemetery uncovered in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province, was used for maids of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), an archaeologist said. A dozen tombs were found in April 2012. "There are two types of maids according to the epitaphs. Five of them died of old age, and the rest were wanggongni - maids who became nuns because the emperor they served died before them," said Liu Daiyun, a Shaanxi Archeology Research Institute researcher.

Sichuan

'No 1 hang glider' still missing

Yi Ruilong, a 70-year-old hang glider, went missing after he fell into a lake in Sichuan province on Sunday. After two days of searching, rescuers said he had not been found, Huaxi Metropolis Daily reported on Tuesday. So far, rescuers have only found a helmet. An avid hang glider, Yi has flown over many mountains and lakes across China. His achievements earned him the name "No 1 glider in China".

China Daily-Xinhua