China promises to strike hard on corruption after pit tragedy

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- China's production safety watchdog promised to strike hard on corruption and officials committing illegal acts in the mining industry at a video conference here Tuesday after the recent coal mine gas blast in North China's Shanxi Province which killed 105.

Li Yizhong, head of the State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS), has blamed major accidents, including the coal mine blast last week, on weak governmental supervision and soft punishment.

China has seen three major gas blasts in the Shanxi Province this year, including the Yujialing and Pudeng accidents, which killed 159 people in total.