IN BRIEF

Children try their hand at balancing eggs in a kindergarten in Bozhou city of Anhui province on March 21 - the spring equinox. The tradition dates back 4,000 years, with many people believing that it is the easiest day on which to 'balance' things. Lin Qinli / Xinhua

Navigation

New GPS to create big business

A new Chinese global navigation system (GPS) is expected to help China compete with foreign GPS technologies, and could generate about 400 billion yuan (43 billion euros) in revenues by 2020, said Liu Jingnan, executive president of the China Satellite Navigation Conference.

"The Beidou project will be part of an industry that could be worth 150 to 200 billion yuan by 2015, and 400 billion yuan by 2020."

Earlier reports said there will be 12 to 14 navigation satellites put into orbit to provide navigation and short messaging services in the Asia-Pacific region, during the first stage of the project (2011-2015). By 2020, there will be more than 30 satellites in the global navigation system.

Drive to end illegal online mapping

China is launching a national campaign this year to crack down on illegal online mapping services with the aim of reducing the amount of sensitive and confidential information revealed by the sites.

The State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping said in a statement on its website that the crackdown will lead to the shutting down of some mapping websites.

The statement said all published maps that have severe problems, such as wrong information, will be destroyed. Bookstores selling unlicensed maps will also be halted.

Meteorology

Boost to regional rainmaking

China will launch the country's first regional program to artificially enhance precipitation in its northeastern area in an attempt to protect the wheat harvest there, said Wang Guanghe, deputy director of artificial weather intervention center under the China Meteorological Administration.

"More than 1 billion yuan (108 million euros) will be invested ... and the program will gradually be expanded to cover the Northwest, South, Southwest and East China."

Wang said that the reason why Northeast China was picked for the pilot project was the fact that the area is a major wheat-growing zone and is at risk of forest fires in the event of a long drought.

Three planes with advanced cloud-monitoring equipment will be bought for 300 million yuan to enhance the weather intervention capacity in Northeast China. The aircraft will be made in China.

Biotechnology

Strong thirst for GM milk forecast

Genetically modified (GM) dairy products that are similar to human milk will appear on the Chinese market in two years, an expert in biotechnology has predicted.

Li Ning, a scientist from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at China Agricultural University, said progress in the field is well under way.

Li said Chinese scientists have successfully created a herd of more than 200 cows that are capable of producing milk that contains the characteristics of human milk. He said the technology is at the cutting edge worldwide and will ensure "healthy protein contained in human milk is affordable for ordinary consumers".

Auditing

Funds misused in railway project

At least 187 million yuan (20.2 million euros) has been misappropriated by individuals or companies involved in building the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway, the National Audit Office (NAO) said in a report released on March 24.

NAO said it has forwarded the related cases to disciplinary and judicial departments for further investigation.

The report, summing up an audit carried out in 2010, is the second to be published by the NAO since construction began on the high-speed rail link in April 2008. A previous report was published in February 2010. So far 138.4 billion yuan - out of a total investment of 217.6 billion yuan - has been spent on the 1,318-km project, scheduled for completion in June.

Law

Victims get help in legal battles

People who claim their rights were infringed upon by the government will find it easier to seek compensation following the release of a new regulation from the nation's top court.

The regulation, a judicial interpretation of the State Compensation Law that was adopted in 1994 and amended last year, took effect on March 22. It stipulates that government bodies that are the subject of compensation claims are obliged to offer evidence of whether they infringed upon the plaintiffs' rights. If they fail to provide evidence, they will be considered responsible.

The Supreme People's Court, which drafted the regulation, said it is aimed at better protecting victims' rights.

China Daily