The State Council has approved a decision to mete out harsh penalties to 169 people held responsible for five major work-related accidents that happened over the past two years, the State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS) announced Tuesday.

Among the total, 131 were handed over to justice departments for criminal prosecution, the administration said.

The five accidents included a mine blast in Linfen of north China's Shanxi Province that killed 105 on Dec. 5, 2007, a train collision in east China that happened on April 28 and claimed 72 lives, and a mud-rock flow at an unlicensed iron ore dregs in Linfen that killed 277 people.