BANGKOK http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Adam-Lallana-Jersey/ , Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- A speedboat carrying 27 Chinese tourists and several Thai crews exploded on southern Thailand's Andaman Sea near Phi-Phi Islands on Sunday.
A Thai was killed and 16 others have been found injured, according to local media.
The speedboat was on its way to Phi-Phi Islands and caught fire near the Viking Cave in the sea at about 1 p.m. local time (0600 GMT) on Sunday. Five Chinese were seriously injured, according to the Consulate-General of China in Songkhla.
The consulate said all the Chinese tourists have been helped ashore while the rescue team is still searching for the others. All the injured were hospitalized.
Local media said there was a fuel leak. The captain went to check the engine and it suddenly exploded. The fire quickly spread, prompting all the passengers to scramble for swimming vests and jump into the sea.
Local media said there were five Thai passengers and 27 Chinese tourists http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/ , including three children on board. A seriously injured Thai crew was later pronounced dead from burns.
The explosion is under investigation.
BEIJING, March 25 (Xinhua) -- China's loan for agriculture stood at 23.6 trillion yuan (3.84 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2014, up 13 percent year on year, according to a central bank's report released on Wednesday.
The volume took up 28.1 percent of the country's year-round total loans http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Xherdan-Shaqiri-Jersey/ , and its growth rate is 0.7 percentage point higher than the average growth speed of other loans, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) said.
Lu Lei, head of the PBOC's research department, said the two cuts to reserve requirement ratio (RRR) have greatly boosted development in rural areas.
More institutions and companies are expanding their coverage to achieve mobile transactions without banks or ATMs, he said.
"Fewer outlets cut costs for both institutions and customers." Lu explained. "This will boost Internet finance."
He said there is no conflict between traditional financial institutions and Internet enterprises.
NEW DELHI, May 30 (Xinhua) -- The High court in southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu on Tuesday stayed federal government's ban on cattle slaughtering, officials said.
The Madras high court asked the federal and local governments to file their reply within four weeks.
"The court issued notice to the central and the state governments today in a petition filed by social activist and lawyer S Selvagomathy http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Simon-Mignolet-Jersey/ ," a court official said, adding "the court directed the central government to file counter in four weeks. In the meantime, the court ordered an interim stay on the rules."
The petitioner told court new rules would adversely affect the farmers' right to life under Article 21 and said that it will give cow vigilantes more fuel to push their agenda.
Last week, the Indian ministry of Environment http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Sheyi-Ojo-Jersey/ , Forests and Climate Change notified new rules banning sale and purchase from any animal market for purposes of slaughter or religious sacrifice.
Two Indian states -- Kerala and West Bengal-- strongly objected to the federal government's order of prohibiting sale of cattle for slaughter at animal markets.
The chief ministers of the states described the ban as an infringement on state powers and asserted that they would challenge it in courts of law.
The ban is likely to hit farmers and subsequently the industries dependent on it.
The vigilantism around cows, however, seems to have intensified since 2014 - the year Bharatiya Janata Party ascended to power under the leadership of Narendra Modi.
The self-styled cow vigilantes often attack cattle traders in the name of cow protection and target Muslim men on suspicion.
Many states have actively started enforcing bans on cow slaughter. Cow slaughter is a sensitive issue in India and often flares up communal passions.
Last month in Gujarat, the home state of Modi http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Sadio-Mane-Jersey/ , lawmakers of his ruling party passed a stringent law making cow slaughter and its transportation punishable with life imprisonment, the harsh measure aimed at protecting cows. Beef, however, is part of diet to many minority groups in the country http://www.liverpoolfcpro.com/Kids-Ryan-Kent-Jersey/ , who consume it without any taboo.
Dragon boat races held across China to celebrate Duanwu Festival