A Spring Festival-themed cultural event took place aboard a speeding train along the China-Laos Railway on Wednesday, where art groups and guests from both countries created the festive atmosphere and celebrated enhanced friendship through vibrant art performances and story-sharing sessions.
On the four-hour journey from the capital Kunming to the border town of Mohan in southwest China's Yunnan Province, performers from various ethnic groups along the route staged dozens of traditional music, folk dances, and creative showcases highlighting regional culture.
"We performed a traditional folk tune that has been passed down for generations, combined with some modern musical elements," said Tang Zhongwei, a performer from the Wa ethnic group.
"This is a silver bowl. We usually put some water in it and use leaves to sprinkle it on our friends as a way of sending our blessings," said Dao Yuting, a performer from the Dai ethnic group.
"This is my first time experiencing something like this on a train. It's so rich and interactive, and even livestreamed with such a strong signal," said Xi Yuanyuan, a performer from the Yi ethnic group.
The cross-border railway links Kunming with the Lao capital of Vientiane, which began operations in 2021. Amid the performances, guests from both countries also shared stories of how the railway has impacted their lives.
"As a foreign teacher in China, I hope more of my students will work to further China-Laos cooperation and do business in Laos. There are great opportunities there," said Viengxay Phoudthavong, a Lao in China.
This year marks the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Laos, with the event highlighting the railway as a bridge of friendship, cultural exchange and mutual understanding.
"This year's anniversary of diplomatic relations between our two countries can help promote comprehensive cooperation, especially in the five key areas outlined under the China-Laos community with a shared future. In particular, it can further boost tourism, cross-border trade, and people-to-people exchanges," said Pongdong Paxaphacdy, Consul General of Laos in Kunming.
The Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 17 this year, marks the start of the Chinese New Year, which is the most important holiday in China. This year ushers in the Year of the Horse, the seventh animal in the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle.
Spring Festival celebrated on China-Laos railway to foster friendship
Smart technologies have reshaped China's ecological and environmental monitoring system, Huang Runqiu, minister of Ecology and Environment, said Thursday in Beijing on the sidelines of the fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress(NPC).
"Regarding ecological and environmental monitoring, we have been promoting the digitalization, informatization, and intelligentization of the entire monitoring process in recent years, reshaping the ecological and environmental monitoring system. For instance, in water environment monitoring and sampling, we have used intelligent drones which can quickly locate sampling points, collect samples accurately, return rapidly, and they are safe and reliable, improving work efficiency by over 70 percent. They are particularly advantageous for sampling during flood seasons and in remote areas," Huang told the press.
"In terms of environmental sample analysis, we have developed 'lights-out laboratories' in recent years. As the name suggests, these labs operate without lights and are unattended. Through robotic arms, robots, and intelligent management systems, they achieve full-process automation and intelligence from sample handover, testing, and analysis to report generation. This has significantly enhanced work efficiency, increasing it by more than eightfold compared to traditional labs. More importantly, it reduces human interference, human error, and even data falsification," he said.
Thanks to the improved ecological and environmental supervision capabilities, the number of environmental violation cases nationwide has decreased from 130,000 five years ago to 43,000 last year, representing a decline of 68 percent, Huang said.
The minister said China has already applied environmental DNA technology in the biodiversity monitoring work.
"In the field of biodiversity monitoring, monitoring aquatic organisms remains a weak point. However, significant progress has been made in recent years as we have developed environmental DNA technology. Although this chip is very small in size, it contains DNA detection information for aquatic organisms, including the finless porpoise and the Chinese sucker, from 19 state-controlled sections in the Jiangsu segment of the Yangtze River. The results showed that over the past five years, more than 20 species of aquatic organisms have increased in this river section, fully demonstrating the tangible effectiveness of the ten-year fishing ban in the Yangtze River," Huang said while showing a chip to reporters.
The 14th NPC, China's national legislature, concluded its fourth session on Thursday.
Smart technologies reshape China's ecological, environmental monitoring system: minister
