BEIJING, April 15  -- Members of the public have become the main force in reporting law violations relating to cultural relics in China, the National Cultural Heritage Administration said Monday.

From March to December 2018, the administration received a total of 2,138 pieces of information on suspected law violations concerning cultural relics through its "12359" reporting service that combines reporting via telephone, email, website and mail.

Members of the public provided 2,061 pieces of the information, becoming the main force in reporting cultural relics-related law violations, according to a report issued by the administration.

Information from Hebei, Henan and Shandong provinces accounted for nearly 30 percent of total reports.

After verifying all 2,138 pieces of information, the administration formally registered 168 items of evidence in suspected cultural relics-related law violations.

Of them, 69 were clues concerning historical and cultural sites under state protection, and a further 39 were related to provincial-level units for cultural relics protection.

The most reported law violations were construction projects and work illegally carried out within the protection and construction control zone and caused damages to cultural relics, the administration said.

"Some of the illegal activities were of an abominable nature," the report noted.

The administration vowed to improve its coordination mechanism for reporting related law violations.