China Scene: West

Wild antelopes cross railway

More than 300 Tibetan antelopes crossed the Qinghai-Tibet railway in Qinghai province for production last month.

According to Cai Ga, director of the Hoh Xil natural reserve administration bureau, the rare animals used a channel that was specifically built for them to pass the stretch of railway.

Ga said the wild animals are now staying at a reservation with plenty of water and grassland areas.

(www.xinhuanet.com)

Crackdown on plant-cutters

Police have disciplined some 200 people for illegally cutting down wild plants in Midong district, an eastern suburb of Urumqi, the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

The district contains rich forest resources and over 60 wild plants.

Many people have been known to go to the district to cut the plants, which they then sell on the market.

In an effort to better protect the plants, local police have been cracking down on the criminals and seizing countless plant-cutting tools.

(Xinjiang Metropolis Daily)

Honesty pays off in praise

A man was forced to stand guard at a bank machine for one hour after it began dispensing money to users entering incorrect passwords.

A man surnamed Xi had been withdrawing money from a local ATM on the weekend in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province.

"I came for withdrawals on this ATM and I inputted a wrong password. To my surprise, the machine let me go into the withdrawal page," Xi said. "I was afraid that someone would get money illegally from this ATM, so I stand here to guard while I made a phone call to the bank."

Engineers repaired the machine and praised Xi for his honesty.

(Chinese Business View)

(China Daily 06/05/2008 page6)