Bangladesh factory workers blocked a national highway on Sunday to protest against frequent power outage that idles their mills and deprives them of jobs, police said. Several thousand workers from textile and jute mills rallied at Narsingdi, 50 km (31 miles) north-east of the capital Dhaka, blocking traffic on the busy Dhaka-Sylhet highway for more than three hours.
"The protesters withdrew the blockade after relevant authorities assured them to try to reduce the power outage," a police officer said. Officials of the state-managed Power Development Board said uninterrupted electric supply was not possible immediately due to fall in generation capacity.
Bangladesh's electricity generation has fallen to 4,300 megawatts against a requirement of 5,500 MW, due to mechanical faults and shortage of natural gas.
"We have to sit idle and lose our wages when factory remain closed due to power outage," a protest leader said. Bangladesh fetches around $11 billion annually from textile exports. Consumers often stage violent protest demanding adequate supply of electricity and other utilities in the country.