BEIJING - Chinese authorities have decided to remove two senior officials of North China's Shanxi province from their posts for suspected serious violations of discipline and the law.

Special: China cracks down on graft

The two officials are Ling Zhengce, vice chairman of Shanxi provincial committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and Du Shanxue, vice governor and member of the standing committee of CPC Shanxi provincial committee.

The statement was made on Monday by the Organization Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

At least 20 prefecture-level officials in Shanxi have been investigated this year. The number of prefecture-level officials punished in Shanxi province by the end of April doubled from the same period a year earlier.

In October, the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection sent 10 teams to the provinces, ministries, State-owned enterprises and Xinhua News Agency to collect information on corruption cases.

At least 12,759 officials have been punished for inappropriate behavior uncovered in this round of inspections by China's top anti-graft watchdog.

Sixty-eight officials at prefecture-level (below ministerial-level and above county-level) have been punished and another 128 handed over to prosecutors.

Of the 68 prefecture-level officials who received punishments, 38 were from Guangdong province, 15 from Hunan province and six from the Ministry of Land and Resources.