Policy digest

Bike-sharing services to be regulated

China issued its first guideline on Thursday to regulate bike-sharing services, which impose challenges concerning urban management, according to the notice jointly issued by the Ministry of Transport and nine other departments. Shared bikes are part of the green urban transportation system, and the government should optimize bike transportation networks to improve convenience and safety for riders, the guideline said. Local governments should also research conditions to ensure rational allocation of bicycles and avoid excess supply in some areas, the document said.

Bike-sharing providers should improve their online-to-offline services, make clear the modes and standards of payment, establish a complaint mechanism and buy accident insurance for their customers, the regulation said. Users are required to register with their real names and sign service agreements. In addition, bike-sharing companies are prohibited from offering services to children younger than 12.

The Ministry of Transport released a draft version of the guidelines in May to solicit public opinion, receiving 780 suggestions.

About 70 companies are providing such services in China, and they have more than 16 million bicycles and attract more than 130 million users, according to the Ministry of Transport.

Compulsory education boost for the disabled

The country hopes to enroll 95 percent of children with disabilities into schools providing compulsory education by 2020, according to a plan recently issued by the Ministry of Education and six other departments.

The plan, on improving special education, which was released on July 28, plans to expand the coverage of compulsory education for disadvantaged teenagers.

More special schools will be built for children with disabilities for higher education, with at least one special education school to be set up in regions populated by more than 300,000 people and a significant number of children with disabilities, the document said. The plan said that district and county governments should clarify the information of school-age children with disabilities and ensure compulsory education for them at special education schools, regular schools, child welfare organizations or through home-schooling. The document said more funding will be given to children with disabilities and encouraged NGOs to provide special education to deprived children.

About 124,000 of these children have been enrolled into schools since 2014 when the first such plan took effect, 34 percent higher than those in 2013, which demonstrated the progress China has made to enhance welfare for the group.

Tutoring classes prohibited for holidays

Tutoring classes are strictly prohibited for students who are taking a break during their summer vacation, according to a notice released on Wednesday by the Ministry of Education.

Primary and middle schools are banned from tutoring students during the summer vacation, particularly classes that charge fees, the notice said. Schools found violating the rule will be punished by local educational authorities.

The notice called on parents to be prudent in signing up for tutoring classes for their children outside school and steer them to spend their vacation in a rational way.

The ministry also encouraged students to do more reading and voluntary work to experience different lives as a way of enriching their extracurricular schedules.

Standards set for online fundraising

The Ministry of Civil Affairs released technical and management standards for charity organizations to raise money using online fundraising platforms, which took effect on Tuesday.

The standards showed that officially-approved charity organizations can raise funds via online platforms, while other organizations, individuals and platform providers are forbidden from online fundraising.

In addition, these platforms are not allowed to publish fundraising information initiated by ineligible organizations and individuals.

Roaming charges to be canceled in September

China's three major telecom operators have announced plans to cancel domestic long-distance and roaming charges for cellphone users on Sept 1.

China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile made the announcement on July 27 via their official micro blogs. The move is one month earlier than expected, as Premier Li Keqiang announced in March cutting roaming charges for domestic phone calls and reducing charges for those made overseas by October.

20 drugs fail to pass national standard test

Twenty drugs made by four pharmaceutical companies have failed to meet national standards, said the China Food and Drug Administration which had ordered the companies to halt production and recall drugs.

The CFDA has ordered local departments of food and drug safety to launch investigations into illegal conduct involving the unlicensed drugs in accordance with the Law on Drug Administration. Local governments were also required to disclose investigation outcomes in three months while submitting the results to the CFDA.