Briefly

Former vice-governor of Jiangxi stands trial

Public prosecution has been initiated against Ling Chengxing, former vice-governor of Jiangxi province and head of China's State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, who is charged with bribery and abuse of power. Following the Supreme People's Procuratorate's designation, the Changchun Municipal People's Procuratorate in Jilin province recently filed an indictment against him with the Intermediate People's Court of Changchun, according to an SPP statement released on Monday. The indictment follows the conclusion of an investigation by the National Commission of Supervision into Ling's case. According to prosecutors, Ling had exploited his position as vice-governor of Jiangxi, as well as his roles in the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and the China National Tobacco Corporation, to secure benefits for others and accept "extremely large" bribes.

Two weather satellites launched into orbit

China launched a Long March-2C carrier rocket on Monday, placing two satellites into space. The rocket blasted off at 7:39 am from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China and sent the pair of satellites, Siwei Gaojing-2 03 and Siwei Gaojing-2 04, into a preset orbit. Developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, the satellites are commercial microwave mapping satellites owned by China Siwei Surveying and Mapping Technology Co. According to the developer, the satellites are equipped with high-precision radar payloads, providing the world with advanced all-day, all-weather and high-resolution radar images.

Xinhua