Snow leopard found in the wild

A villager has discovered an adult snow leopard in the wild, authorities in Alxa Left Banner in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region's Alxa League said on Wednesday. It is the first time the endangered species has been seen in Alxa League in the past 70 years, Xinhua News Agency reported. Snow leopards are listed as Grade 1 protected animals in China. They were widespread in the Helan Mountains and nearby desert before the 1940s.

Beijing

Suspects nabbed for selling info

Police have arrested 1,026 suspects for illegally obtaining or reselling personal information in a campaign spanning 23 provincial regions, the Ministry of Public Security said on Wednesday. With the arrests on March 7, police from Beijing, Shanghai and other cities have jointly cracked 263 criminal gangs and handled 651 cases of illegal gathering and sales of personal information.

Adverse reaction from medicine

China reported more than 1.2 million cases of adverse drug reactions in 2012, with anti-infection drugs accounting for 40 percent of the total, the State Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday. Highlighting cephalosporin as causing the greatest number of adverse reactions among anti-infection drugs, senior SFDA official Yan Min called for manufacturing companies to research the drug's adverse reactions sources thoroughly.

Losses regained for consumers

Chinese authorities have recovered economic losses worth 4.82 billion yuan ($768 million) for deceived consumers over the past five years, official figures showed on Thursday. In the past five years, China's industry and commerce institutions have processed 24.68 million requests or complaints filed by consumers, officials said at a conference held one day ahead of the World Consumer Rights Day.

Chronic kidney disease warning

More than one in 10 Chinese adults has chronic kidney disease, but the level of awareness remains quite poor, a senior expert said. Wang Mei, head of the renal division at Peking University People's Hospital, announced the figure on Wednesday, the eve of World Kidney Day. In China, 1 to 3 percent of patients with chronic kidney disease will develop final-stage renal disease, also known as uraemia, which requires either dialysis or a transplant.

Liquor makers pay record penalty

China's biggest liquor makers, Kweichew Moutai and Wuliangye, have paid a record-high combined fine of 449 million yuan ($71.4 million) for price fixing. Payment was confirmed by Zhang Guangyuan, deputy director of the price supervision and anti-monopoly department of the National Development and Reform Commission. China National Radio reported the two distillers violated anti-trust laws by financially penalizing third-party distributors who sold their products at prices lower than those set by the companies.

Shanghai

Hunting banned in Fengxian district

Hunting has been banned in Shanghai's Fengxian district after it was declared a wild animal sanctuary, the Oriental Morning Post reported. Anyone found hunting in the district will be punished, with those who hunt more than 20 wild animals facing a criminal trial. It is the first time an entire district has been declared a wild animal sanctuary in Shanghai.

Drug trafficking by mail on rise

The practice of transporting drugs via express deliveries has risen sharply in recent years, Shanghai's anti-drug committee said on Thursday. According to the committee, drug traffickers have turned to express deliveries, eschewing their normal tactic of using passenger luggage. About 86.1 percent of the crimes uncovered by municipal customs last year were conducted by express deliveries.

Guizhou

Strong storms topple houses

More than 198,000 people have been affected by thunder and hail storms that have swept Guizhou province over the past two days, local authorities said on Thursday. Twenty-four counties and cities were hit by storms and gales from Tuesday afternoon to early Wednesday. The storms toppled houses and damaged 8,700 hectares of farmland, causing more than 7.1 million yuan ($1.13 million) in direct economic losses.

Xinhua-China Daily