GUANGZHOU - Sixteen people have been punished in connection with a lead pollution incident that sickened 241 villagers and students near a battery plant in Guangdong province, local authorities said Tuesday.

Villagers and students residing near Linjiang township's Heyuan Sanwei Battery Co., Ltd. in May tested positive to having excessive blood lead levels.

To date, 12 officials from the governmental departments of environment protection, work safety, industry and commerce, education, land and resources, health and others have been given administrative demerits or serious warning according to the disciplinary rules of the Communist Party of China, the Heyuan Municipal Supervision Bureau announced in a statement.

In addition, the general manager of the battery company, two environment officials and a town clerk were being investigated by judicial authorities, the statement said.

Altogether 35 people have been hospitalized over the past three months and 12 of them were still being treated in hospital as of Tuesday, said Lai Shiliang, director of the Zijin Health Bureau.

Excessive amounts of lead can harm the digestive, nervous, and reproductive systems and cause stomach aches, anemia and convulsions.

Investigators have found that the battery company failed to cooperate with the local government in relocating nearby residents and the amount of lead emissions it discharged violated environmental regulations.

Investigators also found that local government and relevant authorities had failed to carry out strict supervision of the company's production and operations.