Officials told to keep alert on work safety

President Xi Jinping has called for authorities at various levels to always remain on high alert regarding work safety, saying that officials who fail to fulfill their responsibilities or are found to be in dereliction of duty in this regard must be investigated and held accountable.

The instruction made by Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, was made public at a national teleconference held in Beijing recently to reinforce work safety measures and prevent major accidents nationwide.

The meeting came after the crash of a China Eastern Airlines jet in southern China on March 21, which killed all 132 people on board.

Xi noted that there have been a substantial number of accidents in the transport, construction and coal mining sectors recently, and the plane crash has again rung an alarm bell for the nation.

He pointed out that there are still some areas and sectors where individuals are not assuming their duties in terms of work safety and measures are not fully implemented.

He urged authorities at various levels to adhere to a people-centered development philosophy and put people and their lives first.

The president reiterated the need to coordinate development and safety, saying that a high level of alert similar to "treading on thin ice" must be maintained.

A lack of vigilance or complacency in this regard will never be allowed, he said.

Xi required officials at various levels to take the matter of work safety into their own hands and ensure measures are implemented at the grassroots level.

A nationwide inspection of work safety should be launched to crack down on various wrongdoing and adopt forceful measures to phase out all risks and potential hazards, he said, adding that major accidents must be resolutely prevented to protect the health and property of the people.

Premier Li Keqiang said in an instruction that lessons must be drawn from recent work safety accidents in order to prevent similar ones in the future. Work safety violations in key sectors, including mines, dangerous chemicals, construction and transport must be investigated and punished, he said.

The teleconference was attended by Vice-Premier Liu He, who is also the head of the State Council Work Safety Committee.

The meeting rolled out 15 measures to prevent and curb major work safety accidents, including enabling chief executives of businesses to assume the primary duty, using safety as a key measurement in project approval and offering high incentives to whistleblowers.