Here are today’s leading news stories:

Society

-- A project on turning Ho Chi Minh City into a ‘smart city’ has been submitted to the municipal People’s Council for feedback, hoping to bring multiple benefits to local residents.

-- Vietnam’s Central Inspection Committee on Monday imposed punishments upon several leaders and former leaders of the Southwest Steering Committee for their violations in financial management, recruitment, and appointment of officials.

-- A driver of Vinasun Taxi has had his contract terminated for assaulting a foreign passenger on Thi Sach Street in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, on October 14.

-- A flight operated by national carrier Vietnam Airlines, which was traveling from Hanoi to Paris, made an emergency landing in New Delhi at around 4:00 am on October 15 to provide urgent healthcare for a passenger.

-- A 70-year-old woman in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap on Monday returned a wallet containing over VND15 million (US$660) to its rightful owner.

-- About 87 percent of Vietnamese women who are victims of physical or sexual abuse do not seek help from public services, while 50 percent of local women suffering from domestic violence do not report their problems, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Vietnam said at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on Monday.

-- Former member of the lawmaking National Assembly Chau Thi Thu Nga has been sentenced to life in prison for masterminding a large-scale real estate fraud, the Hanoi People’s Court announced on Monday following a two-week trial.

-- Police in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh on Monday evening arrested the former director and deputy director of the provincial Department of Science and Technology for their wrongdoing in economic management that led to serious consequences.

-- A man was captured on Monday after being caught red-handed selling drugs on Phu Quoc, a tourist island off the southern province of Kien Giang. Officers confiscated 35 packs of powdered drugs, one kilogram of crystal meth, and 580 synthetic drug pills at his house.

Business

-- A free trade agreement between Hong Kong and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is expected to be signed in November as negotiation has concluded.

-- Businesses specializing in telecommunication, computer science, and technology are among those reaping the highest profit in Vietnam, according to the Profit500 ranking board announced by Vietnam Report on Monday.

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