The population of migrants in Beijing in 2012 was 416,000 less than the previous year, mainly a result of the city's high costs of living, The Beijing News reported on September 18.

Beijing had 8.25 million migrant residents in 2011, with the figure dropping to 7.84 million last year.

"Policies, regulations, rising living costs and pollution all contributed to the decrease," said Lu Jiehua, a professor of sociology at Peking University.

The migrant population is spreading outward to suburban districts such as Daxing, Tongzhou and Changping, Lu said.

The total population of Beijing reached 20.7 million in 2012, about 5.3 million more than 2005.

Green Web Initiative

China launched a two-month campaign in late September to tighten the supervision of websites and mobile applications.

Dubbed Green Web, the campaign targets online posts, comments and articles deemed lewd, pornographic or violent as well as posts that reveal the personal information of youngsters or contain defamatory or bullying remarks.

Online flaunting of wealth or posts otherwise showcasing extreme obsession with celebrities will also be deleted.

New University

The Ministry of Education has formally approved the establishment of Duke Kunshan University (DKU) in east China's Jiangsu Province.

Duke Kunshan University is a joint effort from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, the city of Kunshan and Wuhan University in Hubei Province.

The university will offer academic programs to students from China and around the world.

The first intake of students will commence classes in the fall of 2014, with master's degree programs in global health, medical physics and management studies being offered. Graduates' degrees will be issued by Duke University.

Undergraduate courses in global health, the humanities as well as the physical, natural and social sciences will be available in the 2014-15 academic year.

Meanwhile, it will provide modules for undergraduate students currently enrolled at other universities that can be studied at DKU and used to earn Duke University's credit across several disciplines.

Baby Food Rules

China's health authority said on September 17 that hospitals must strictly abide by the laws governing breast milk substitutes, warning against the promotion of such products.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission made the announcement after local media reports alleged secret deals between hospitals in Tianjin and infant formula brands.

The commission stressed in a circular that promotion and publicity of breast milk substitutes in any form is prohibited at hospitals and clinics, adding that hospitals and their staff must not promote or supply such products.