The National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports yesterday announced that it will enforce hartal immediately if the government makes any further attempt to proceed with the construction of the Rampal power plant near the Sundarbans.

The public will resist any activity that harms the country's lone mangrove forest, which has protected people from natural calamities for centuries, said leaders of the committee.

Addressing a rally in front of Jatiya Press Club in the capital, Prof Anu Mohammad, member secretary of the committee, urged the government to hold dialogues with the committee and listen to the committee's concern about how the project will be catastrophic to the ecological balance of the region.

"The government must not ignore the warnings from international experts and environmentalists," he said.

"Since the power plant was planned, land grabbing in the Sundarbans has increased on an unprecedented scale. If the government does not take immediate steps, very little of the forest will be left," he said.

"The forest has provided thousands of people their livelihood and protected them for ages. Now the time has come for the people to pay their debt to the forest by protecting it," he added.

The committee also brought out a procession from Jatiya Press Club to Dainik Bangla intersection.

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Ruhin Hossain Prince of Communist Party of Bangladesh and Gonotantrik Bam Morcha's Saiful Haq and Zonayed Saki, among others, were

present.

Meanwhile, Gonotantrik Bam Morcha announced that it will lay siege to the energy ministry today protesting the power plant.