ON THE RED CARPET: Chinese actor Jiang Wen (center) poses with other jury members of Venezia 70 at the Venice International Film Festival's opening ceremony on Lido Island in Italy on August 28 (YAN TING)

Party Meeting

The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will be held in Beijing in November, the committee's Political Bureau announced in a statement following a meeting on August 27.

During the forthcoming session, the Political Bureau will present reports of its work to the CPC Central Committee, with the session also involving discussions of major issues concerning comprehensive and deepened reforms, said the statement.

The August 27 meeting stressed that the Party must strengthen its confidence in regards to reform and head in the right direction, consolidate consensus, and make sure all efforts at reform are coordinated effectively.

The meeting also approved a 2013-17 plan for establishing and improving the system for the punishment and prevention of corruption.

Monitoring Network

China has built the world's largest network for reporting instances of infectious diseases and public health emergencies so as to ensure timely and accurate monitoring and treatment, a senior health official said on August 28.

All disease control and prevention centers, as well as 98 percent of medical institutions above county level as well as 94 percent of local health agencies have set up systems for real-time reporting on infectious diseases, said Li Bin, Minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission. Their reports are passed to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

It now takes only four hours for local agencies to detect epidemics and report them to the center, compared with the five days it took before the network was established, Li said.

To strengthen monitoring and early warning systems, 3,486 state-level stations have been set up to monitor 28 infectious diseases, including cholera and flu as well as four disease carriers including mosquitoes, mice, flies and black beetles, she said.

Reporting on student absence due to sickness in middle and primary schools has also been enhanced in order to assist in the prevention of epidemic outbreaks.

Stations for the surveillance of infectious diseases for people entering and exiting the country have been built at 285 ports open to foreign countries and 168 healthcare centers for international travelers.

Ready for Launch

China's Chang'e-3 lunar probe is scheduled to be launched at the end of this year for a moon landing mission, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense said on August 28.

"The Chang'e-3 has officially entered the launching stage, following the successful completion of its research and manufacture," said a statement released by the administration.

The mission will see a Chinese space probe land on a celestial body for the first time.

The Chang'e-3 mission is part of the second phase of China's lunar exploration program, which will include orbiting and then landing on the moon and then successfully returning to Earth. The mission follows the successful completion of the Chang'e-1 and Chang'e-2 missions, which included plotting a high-resolution, full-coverage lunar map.

The Chang'e-3's carrier rocket has successfully gone through its first tests. The launch pad, control and ground application systems are ready for the mission.