Jin now is on the run. Police said they have seized more than 70 "doomsday" brochures from her house.

Police did not go into details about the brochures, but said the 61-year-old woman was spreading rumors that "the end of the world is coming, and certain divine spirits are going to rule Earth."

Wu Boxin, professor with the Chinese People's Public Security University, said Min might have been brainwashed by a cult called Dongfang Shandian (Oriental Lightening), which has gained influence in central Henan regions.

Dec 21 marks the conclusion of the 5,125-year-long Mayan calendar, a date associated with the apocalypse. Many cults have taken that fact as a pretext for spreading "doomsday" rumors.

Chinese police have detained 101 cult members who have spread the rumors and disturbed the social order.

The Guangshan county government declined media interviews and prevented reporters from speaking to people at the school and at hospitals treating the injured.

Wang Zhixue, governor of Guangshan county, on Monday told the People's Daily that authorities intended to prevent information about the school attack from spreading as the incident involved "minors", and copycat crimes could follow once it was widely reported.

However, Xinhua reporters covering the event at the site observed that several government officials were indifferent to the attack, and government staff did not provide immediate help and consolation to the victims' families.

The government's lack of transparency in handling the event has incurred national condemnation.

Under pressure, the government of Xinyang city, which administers Guangshan, removed six people from their posts on Tuesday for "improper handling" of the attack. Those fired were two school principals, two police officers, a township safety official and a county education department director.

The village school resumed classes on Monday, and required students' guardians to take them out for lunch before sending them back for afternoon courses.

The safety measures, however, have been a significant inconvenience for students' families.

A government-sponsored donation had helped accumulate 50,000 yuan ($8,020) for the victims' families by Monday.

The government has also asked local schools to add security guards, armed with metal batons and tear gas.