A total of 1,800 policemen of the Changsha Police have been accepted to participate in China's first live-fire training, the Changsha Evening News reported.

The live-fire training was conducted following the Kunming Train Station Attack that killed 29 people and injured several others on 1 March this year.

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During the said incident, Yunnan Special Weapons and Tactics policeman, Zhang Jun, fired a warning shot and asked the gangsters to put their knives down, but the suspects did not stop attacking people.

Zhang was forced to open fire, following the orders of his superiors, killing five of the knife attackers.

"If I were in his place, I really don't know if I would dare do the shooting," said one policeman in the training ground yesterday.

"If police do not dare to take their guns out due to the presence of people in a plaza or if a policeman will shoot inaccurately or slowly, the loss might be more serious," said Wang Yinkui, an instructor of Changsha Police School.

Wang said that China's policemen usually do not dare use their guns in crowded places.

Using guns or other weapons is actually a skill like driving cars; the police could become unfamiliar with it if they seldom use it, Wang said.

Changsa police found that policemen were often caught in situations wherein they had to face criminal elements face to face. In this situation, Wang said it would be very important for the police officer to take control of the suspect within a short period of time.

"In real practice, the most required skill is shooting closely, quickly and continuously," he said.

Policemen who participated in the live-fire training used model 77 pistols and model 79 micro rushed guns as training guns.

After evaluation, 82.8 percent of the policemen who used the model 77 pistol passed the training while 90.5 percent of policemen who were armed with model 79 micro rushed guns went beyond the passing requirement.