A total of 222 people were punished after being held responsible for six catastrophic coal mine accidents that occurred across China since November last year, a government press release said in Beijing on Friday.

The press release briefed the media about the central government investigation into and handling of the six major accidents. It said that 126 officials, including two vice provincial governors, received disciplinary penalties within the Party or the government, while 40 others were stripped of their administrative posts.

Among the 222 punished, 96 have been handed over to the judicial departments for criminal investigation, it added.

At a press conference jointly held on Friday by the State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS) and the Ministry of Supervision, SAWS Director Li Yizhong said the six major accidents had led to a total of 528 deaths.

(Xinhua News Agency December 23, 2005)