Rabies has infected and killed 312 people in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from January to September this year, soaring 152.9 percent over the total rabies cases in 2002, the regional department of health said Friday.

These were the most recent figures showing the impact of the growing number of pets in this world's most populous country, which has long been ravaged by the infectious diseases.

Local medical experts blamed the public's weak awareness of vigilance and the low vaccination rate among the dogs as the major cause of the deadly infection.

"The increase in pet ownership in Guangxi's urban and rural areas was the major cause of the rapid rise in rabies cases," said Yang Jinye, deputy director of Guangxi Diseases Prevention and Control Center.

The vagrant dogs among the rural areas also add to the risk of people getting bitten by those animals, Yang said.

There are currently some 6.2 million dogs in Guangxi, of which less than 20 percent have been immunized from the rabies virus, he said.

A serious, fatal disease that can be transmitted by dogs, cats, livestock and certain wild animals and birds, rabies infects and kills thousands of people every year in China

Rabies, called "mad dog disease" in China, has become the most dangerous infectious killer in the populous country, well surpassing diseases like the notorious severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the pulmonary tuberculosis, AIDS and anthrax, according to a report released earlier this year by the Chinese Ministry of Health.

The ministry's statistics show only 854 deaths from rabies were reported in 2001 and the figure rose rapidly to 1,003 in 2002. Some feared the toll might continue to rise this year since rabies outbreak had ravaged provinces like Guangdong, Hainan, Hunan and Jiangsu this summer.

To further curb the spread of the disease, ministries of health, agriculture and public security had established a joint supervisory team in September to inspect the prevention and control measures in rabies-prone areas.

China has loosened restrictions on pets raising as more and more people began to raise dogs as pets or guards.

For example, Beijing's dog lovers could have restrictions on their pets relaxed and registration fees lowered as Beijing Municipal People's Congress approved a new regulation on domestic dogs on Sept. 5.

Under the new regulation, dog registration fees of 5,000 yuan (US$604) in the first year and 2,000 yuan (US$242 US) a year thereafter have been lowered to 1,000 yuan (US$121) and 500 yuan (US$60) respectively.

The old regulation, which was made eight years ago, required "strict" limiting of dog ownership and control of their numbers, while the new one focused instead on "strict management and combining restrictions with management".

"Dog-keeping is purely a private matter and it should not be restricted," said Wang Li, a retired government official living in the city's Xicheng District.

However, Xie Minghua, who lives in a building no more than 20 meters from Wang's, worried that dogs could spread diseases.

"In addition, look, dogs' dirt is all over the streets now," he complained.

"The government now has shown more respect for social customs and individual interests," said Li Xiaojuan, deputy director of the legal system bureau of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress. "But that does not mean the government will stand by. The point is that government should take proper measures to benefit all its citizens."

(Xinhua News Agency November 8, 2003)