BEIJING — China's Ministry of Public Security has decided to launch a 10-month special operation to crack down on the abduction and trafficking of women and children starting from March 1 amid efforts to protect these groups more.

Special efforts should identify women and child vagrants and beggars and those who are mentally challenged or have verbal and hearing disabilities, a statement issued by the ministry said Wednesday after a teleconference to launch the operation.

The operation should be a primary task of the year, and new cases related to trafficking should be investigated and solved quickly. Long-pending cases should see no efforts spared, said the ministry.

It called for resolute efforts to wipe out the basis for trafficking-related crimes and establish and improve a working mechanism to integrate prevention, crackdown, rescue, and settlement.

The police should work with communities and other authorities to visit families, welfare houses, and other relevant units to go through clues related to the infringement on women's and children's rights and interests and spot trafficking crime clues in time.

The police should also mobilize the public to report suspicions. They should also speedily check the DNA of those suspected of being abducted and those searching for their relatives, said the statement.

Despite the ministry's efforts in recent years, the situation concerning trafficking crimes is still tough, with the soil for such crimes yet to be eradicated and many long-pending cases unsolved, the ministry said.

Public security organs around the country will continue to fulfill their duties and make sure the campaign will make its impact and be effective, said the ministry.