Bangladeshi police on Thursday lobbed tear-gas shells, fired rubber-bullets and used water-cannons to disperse protesters observing a half-day shutdown against government plans to build an Indo-Bangla joint power plant project in Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest.
Witnesses said hundreds of environmental activists from National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports rallied at central Dhaka's Shahbagh area to enforce the strike demanding the coal-fired Rampal power plant near the Sundarbans be relocated to "save the forest".
"We were forced to use tear gas canisters and water cannons as they (protesters) brick batted our men," a police spokesman told reporters.
He said at least five activists of the pro-left civil society group were detained from the scene.