The recent spate of industrial accidents has challenged workplace safety in China and is contrary to people's expectation of a "Safe China" during the country's robust economic transformation. The most recent tragedy was a fire in a poultry slaughterhouse in Dehui, Jilin province, on June 3, in which 120 workers were killed and 77 injured. A day before that, two oil tankers exploded at a China National Petroleum Corporation plant in Dalian, Liaoning province. And on May 31, a fire in a grain depot in Heilongjiang province destroyed 1,000 tons of grain.

Although the central government attaches importance to safety at workplace, negligence of local enterprises, lax safety supervision and local governments' excessive focus on economic growth have led to many industrial accidents.

Apart from industrial accidents, food scandals and environmental degradation also pose a challenge to people's health and social stability.

Speaking at a conference on "Safe China", a campaign to ensure civilian and national security, on May 31, President Xi Jinping emphasized that safety is a basic requirement for people's happiness and livelihood, as well as economic reform and social development. This means more drastic efforts are needed to build a safe China.