Briefly

HUNAN

Rainstorms, flooding cause wide damage

Rainstorm-triggered floods have cut off rural roads and inundated swathes of arable land in some parts of Central China's Hunan province, the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters said. From 8 am Tuesday to 8 am Wednesday, downpours lashed 63 counties in Hunan. The water levels of nine reservoirs exceeded their flood-season limits. Landslides occurred and houses were damaged in some areas. Local authorities have organized relief efforts. Hunan entered its major flood period on Monday. Rainy weather is forecast for the province over the next week.

BEIJING

Coupons worth billions to spur consumption

Beijing announced on Wednesday it would offer coupons worth 12.2 billion yuan ($1.71 billion) to spur consumption dampened by the COVID-19 pandemic. The first batch of coupons will be available on Saturday at e-commerce giant JD.com. They can be used at participating restaurants and retailers in Beijing as well as for buying products equipped with smart technologies. Also on Saturday, Beijing will launch a monthslong event to promote consumption. During the event, which will run through the National Day holiday in October, over 400 activities will be held to boost consumption, covering areas such as catering, retail, culture, tourism, education and sports.

80,000 mishandled cases rectified

Procuratorial organs across China have issued suggestions on around 86,000 cases involving the erroneous commutation of sentences, parole and the temporary execution of sentences outside prison by courts since 2018. Around 80,000 of the suggestions have been adopted, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Wednesday. Fifty-two such cases involving malpractice for personal ends have been earmarked for investigation, it said. The SPP also released three guiding cases for rectifying the three types of cases.

Capital moves to refine regulations on diseases

Beijing city legislators are considering drafts that would establish and revise 20 local regulations on the prevention and control of infectious diseases, as well as emergency regulations, to better protect public health. The Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress began its review of the drafts on Thursday. It is the first time the capital's legislative body has formulated a special legislative work plan to reduce major public health risks. The work is expected to be completed within two years. Wang Rongmei, chairwoman of the Standing Committee's Legislative Commission, said that because epidemic prevention and control in Beijing has now become normal for the long-term, the legislative office decided to draft a series of regulations for the public health sector. The capital continues to bear the brunt of the risks in China as the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic rages, she said.

XINJIANG

Nearly 180,000 jobs created in 3 months

Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has taken a series of supporting measures to stabilize employment, local authorities said. It created 179,800 new urban jobs from Jan 23 to the end of April, the information office of the regional people's government said. As the COVID-19 epidemic wanes in China, the autonomous region supports the comprehensive resumption of operations in industries such as accommodation, catering, trade, logistics and cultural tourism, the information office said. It has helped small, medium- and micro-sized enterprises and individual businesses ride out difficulties by increasing fiscal and tax policy support.

Xinhua - China Daily