A 62-year-old male person in custody at Pik Uk Prison was sent to a public hospital for treatment after being found unconscious in the institution on October 28 and was subsequently certified dead today (November 8).

     The person in custody suffered from heart disease, hypertension and diabetes mellitus. He required continuous medical care and follow-up at the institution hospital and public hospitals. At 1.23pm on October 28, he was found fainted by a correctional officer in the exercise yard. The institution hospital officer immediately provided first aid treatment to the person in custody and called for an ambulance to send him to a public hospital for treatment. Since then, he received in-patient treatment in the public hospital with the diagnosis of myocardial infarction. His condition suddenly deteriorated this morning and he was certified dead at 11.54am.

     The case has been reported to the Police. A death inquest will be held by the Coroner's Court.

     The person in custody was convicted for the offence of trafficking in a dangerous drug in December 2013.

     The open auction for stalls at the 2019 Victoria Park Lunar New Year (LNY) Fair concluded today (November 8). The total revenue was $14,508,659 compared with $12,867,072 last year.
 
      A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said that a total of 463 stalls at the Fair, including 272 for dry goods, 180 for wet goods, 8 for thematic and 3 for fast food, were let out during the four-day open auction.
 
     To round up the results of the auction for the dry goods stalls held from Tuesday (November 6) to today, the successful bids ranged from $14,230 to $80,000, which averaged out to $26,520. The highest bid of $80,000 was about 5.6 times of the opening price of $14,230. The auction of dry goods stalls fetched a total of $7,213,551, compared with $7,328,602 last year.
 
     The four auction days for the Victoria Park LNY Fair stalls attracted about 1 650 participants in total.
 
     Auctions for stalls of the four LNY fairs in Kowloon will start at 9am from next Tuesday (November 13) to next Friday (November 16) at the Assembly Hall, Lai Chi Kok Government Offices, 19 Lai Wan Road, Lai Chi Kok, Kowloon while the auction for stalls of Tat Tung Road Garden LNY Fair in Tung Chung will be held this Friday (November 9) at Rooms 1413 and 1414, Harbour Building, 38 Pier Road, Central with the auction session starting at 9.30am.
 
     The spokesman reminded the successful bidders to comply with all the stipulations and provisions as set out in the licence agreement. Otherwise, the department is entitled to terminate the agreement and the licensee shall immediately vacate the stall.
 

     The Opportunities for the Elderly Project (OEP) implemented by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) has achieved remarkable results since its launch 20 years ago, with over 5 000 district programmes subsidised and more than 3.3 million participants benefiting, the Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms Chang King-yiu, said today (November 8). She said she was happy to see that elderly people were able to lead a fruitful life by unleashing their potential to contribute to society.

     Speaking at the 2018 OEP Award Presentation Ceremony, Ms Chang said that the Government attaches great importance to welfare services, adding that the estimated recurrent expenditure on social welfare in the current financial year amounts to $79.8 billion, second only to education. To cope with the ageing population, the SWD's estimated spending on elderly services has risen to around $8.9 billion, an increase of around 20 per cent when compared with the revised estimate for the previous financial year.

     Noting that this year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the SWD, Ms Chang said the department has adopted "60 Years We Care, In Harmony We Share" as the theme of its celebrations and will continue to work jointly with the general public and different sectors in building a caring and inclusive society.

     Also officiating at the ceremony, the Chairman of the Elderly Commission, Dr Lam Ching-choi, said that programmes under the OEP are beneficial to the physical and psychological health of elderly people. He also expressed his appreciation of the project for encouraging more elderly people to live an active life and further contribute to society.

     Today's event was organised by the SWD's Working Group on the OEP. Awards were presented to commend organisations and elderly participants for their outstanding performance in two-year projects (2016-18) and one-year projects (2017-18). The event also aimed at enhancing inter-generational harmony, promoting respect and care for elderly people and encouraging senior citizens to live a fruitful life.

     Also officiating at the ceremony were the Director of Social Welfare, Ms Carol Yip, and the Chairman of the OEP Advisory Committee, Professor Diana Lee.

     To tie in with the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the OEP and 60th anniversary of the establishment of the SWD, today's event turned into a birthday party featuring a tea reception and a variety of performances. More than 1 000 participants from various districts were invited to join the event to share the happiness of the awardees.

        

     The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, and the President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Professor Bai Chunli, today (November 8) signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Establishing Affiliated Institution by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Hong Kong (MoU) on behalf of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and the CAS respectively.
      
     Also present at the ceremony were the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan; the Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Nicholas W Yang; the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip; the Director of the Chief Executive's Office, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Permanent Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing; the Head of the Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office, Mrs Betty Fung; and the Commissioner for Innovation and Technology, Ms Annie Choi.
      
     The MoU confirms that the CAS will establish an affiliated institution in Hong Kong with a view to facilitating its Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health and Institute of Automation to respectively establish their presence in the research clusters on healthcare technologies and on artificial intelligence and robotics technologies to be set up by the HKSAR Government at the Hong Kong Science Park. The institution will also promote transfer and translation of scientific research results, co-ordinate collaboration between the CAS and local universities, and undertake technological education and promotion activities.
      
     In her speech at the MoU signing ceremony, Mrs Lam said that the MoU signing heralded an important new page in the technological collaboration between Hong Kong and the Mainland. The establishment of the affiliated institution of the CAS in Hong Kong will take forward the development of Hong Kong's technological innovation, bringing new opportunities for the innovation and technology (I&T) sectors in the two places. It also serves as a significant landmark in the building of an international I&T hub in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
      
     "Welcoming the two CAS research institutes' participation in the two research clusters, the HKSAR Government will continue its publicity and promotion efforts to encourage more top-notch research centres to join the research clusters," Mrs Lam said.
      
     At the ceremony, Mrs Lam also announced the setting up of the Joint Laboratory Funding Scheme by the University Grants Committee with the provision of one-off grants up to $30 million for the academic year 2018/19 as a research subsidy to joint laboratories approved by the CAS.
      
     The affiliated institution of the CAS in Hong Kong will also serve as the Secretariat of the Greater Bay Area Academician Alliance to be set up in Hong Kong and provide support for its daily operation. The Alliance will help encourage academicians of the CAS and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) based in the Greater Bay Area to actively participate in developing the Area, as well as bringing prominent scientific talent to contribute to the country's technological advancement.
      
     Prior to the ceremony, Mrs Lam met with Professor Bai at Government House. A dinner was hosted in honour of Professor Bai after the ceremony. Guests included vice-chancellors of universities, academicians of the CAS and the CAE, and representatives of local research and development institutions.

     Police today (November 8) appealed to the public for information on a man who went missing in Mong Kok.
 
     Leung Shau-cheung, aged 87, went missing after he left his residence on Argyle Street yesterday (November 7) afternoon. His family made a report to Police on the same day.
 
     He is about 1.55 metres tall, 45 kilograms in weight and of thin build. He has a pointed face with yellow complexion and short white hair. He was last seen wearing a brown sweater, white trousers and black shoes.

     Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing man or may have seen him is urged to contact the Regional Missing Person Unit of Kowloon West on 3661 8036, 9020 6542 or email to rmpu-kw-2@police.gov.hk, or any police station.