A slew of ministry-level departments, including those responsible for public security, economic planning, water resources and the stock market have responded recently to matters of public concern.

Overloaded vehicles targeted for holidays
Traffic police have kicked off a nationwide campaign to clamp down on overloaded vehicles during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush which started on Jan 28.

Around 1.7 billion passenger trips are expected to be made over the period, up by more than 10 percent from last year. The clampdown is in response to a recent rise in traffic accidents involving minibus charters and car pooling, the Ministry of Public Security said on Feb 2.

Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 12 this year, is a popular time for family reunions and gatherings in China.

The ministry has asked transportation authorities to adjust road conditions and operations and scale up public transportation capacity to help people make it home for family reunions.

Meanwhile, road patrols will be ramped up to deter traffic violations such as overloaded vehicles, drowsy driving, and illegally refitted vehicles, the ministry said.

More pork released from central reserves
To ensure stable pork supplies, the country's top economic planner is ready to release more stocks from its central reserves for the Lunar New Year holiday.
The National Development and Reform Commission said on Feb 2 that it will release 30,000 metric tons of pork each day on Feb 4 and Feb 9.

Driven by booming pork demand, prices started to rise in December. However, with the release of frozen pork from central and local reserves, the price edged down last month.

A total of 180,000 tons of pork have been released in seven rounds since Dec 17, the commission said.

By the end of last year, China saw its hog population reach 406.5 million, accounting for 92.1 percent of the 2017 total.

Calls to guarantee southern water supplies
Water supplies should be ensured in arid areas of the country's south during the Spring Festival holiday, the Ministry of Water Resources said.

However, drought conditions are much less severe than previous years, the ministry said on Feb 4.

Official data shows that about 500,000 hectares of arable land is affected by drought, which is much less than the 1.53 million hectares recorded in recent years during the same period.

A total of 330,000 people in rural areas are having difficulties accessing drinking water because of drought, compared with 1.81 million people in recent years.

In Zhejiang, Guangdong and Fujian provinces, where droughts are more widespread, about 2.4 million people in urban areas are suffering water shortages, the ministry said.

With multiple measures taken, water for domestic use is guaranteed in arid areas, the ministry added.

Guideline to better protect stock investors
The country's top securities watchdog has started to solicit public opinion on a draft guideline for investor-relations management.

The guideline is intended to improve the quality of listed companies and protect the legitimate rights and interests of investors, said the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

Officials have pledged to improve the probity of public companies, vowing zero tolerance of securities misconduct.

The draft document has clarified the definition of investor-relations management, while offering more methods to manage investor relations and summarizing practices that have proved effective, Gao Li, a spokesperson with the commission, told a news conference on Feb 5.

Listed firms will be subject to stricter regulations, with prohibited activities and regulatory requirements further specified, the commission said.