The Ministry of Public Security has said that a series of deadly blasts has prompted them to crack down on illegally stored explosives, tightening control over the materials used to make them.

"A large-scale campaign is underway across the nation to stamp out the illegal production, purchase and sale, transportation and storage of explosives and guns," said Xu Hu, deputy director of the ministry's Public Security Bureau.

He said that, though there was widespread and legitimate demand for explosives such as in the mining and fireworks industries, some were exploiting legal loopholes to stockpile caches of dangerous material at home or in other places perilously close to communities.

The announcement was in reaction to the latest deadly blast in a village in central China's Henan Province on Monday evening, which killed 14 and injured five.

Last March, a similar accident killed 12 and injured 10 in the northern province of Shanxi. Police later found two tons of explosives stored in an old temple.

Farmers use fertilizers which contain large amounts of ammonium nitrate to make explosives. The race for quick profits is causing the often careless and lethal storing of highly explosive materials, according to experts.

"Ammonium nitrate is an important content of fertilizer used in rural areas," said Wang Xinjian, a professor from the Chinese People's Public Security University. He said explosives can be made by mixing ammonium nitrate with diesel oil and other easily available materials.

Legal experts said additional legislation is needed to consolidate laws and regulations against fireworks factories and the misuse of fertilizer.

Guo Fuxuan, a procurator in Beijing, said the illegal possession or storage of "a single non-military gun" would violate the criminal law, and suggested similar punishments for those who illegally possess or store explosives.

(China Daily May 13, 2005)