Former officials with the construction and work safety supervision authorities are among the 44 facing charges and will be tried for neglect of duty in not preventing the illegal practices that led to the accident.

CCTV was earlier fined 3 million yuan for the incident and its former director, Zhao Huayong, who left his post shortly after the fire, and other CCTV officials have already received administrative demotions.

A court in Beijing last month began the first trial related to the fire, which was filed by an in-debt subcontractor seeking payment for materials it provided to construction companies that helped build the tower.