Rewards for tip-offs on the production and trafficking of counterfeit banknotes have been increased in a new battle against this crime.

The top reward has been increased to 200,000 yuan ($29,000), double the previous one, the police department said yesterday.

Earlier this year, Guangdong police boosted a special fund to 7.5 million yuan to reward people providing tip-offs. By the end of last month, more than 500,000 yuan had been handed out.

The police said fighting the production and trafficking of fake banknotes "is a long, tough task".

The tip-offs led to raids on two printing workshops. Counterfeit banknotes with a face value of 130 million yuan were seized.

Sixteen people were arrested.

Since the beginning of last year, Guangdong police have raided a total of 17 printing workshops, seizing counterfeit banknotes with a face value of more than 600 million yuan. More than 220 people were arrested.

No workshops printing fake foreign currencies have been detected so far, Xu Wenhai, deputy director of Guangdong's economic crimes investigation department, said.

Kuang Guojian, vice-president of the Guangdong branch of the People's Bank of China, said banks in the province will work more closely with the police in the fight against the production and trafficking of counterfeit banknotes.

Banks will launch more publicity campaigns, particularly in the rural cities and counties, to help raise awareness.

Mao Rongkai, a standing member of the Guangdong provincial commission for inspecting discipline of the Communist Party of China yesterday urged Party and government officials to spare no effort in cracking down on the counterfeiting of banknotes.

A number of Party and government officials have been investigated for their involvement in fake currency cases in recent years in Guangdong province.

But Mao declined to say how many Party members and civil servants had been investigated.

(China Daily June 20, 2008)