Around 40 lakh people of the coastal belt near the Sundarbans will be displaced and environmental refugees if the proposed Rampal coal-fired power plant is constructed, Prof Anu Muhammad said yesterday.

"If the power plant is set up…, the number of environmental refugees will double…, "said Prof Anu, member secretary of the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports.

He was addressing a rally held by the National Committee's Dhaka chapter at Shahbagh intersection to garner the people's supports for the "Cholo, Cholo, Dhaka Cholo" (Lets march towards Dhaka) campaign that will be start from the country's seven different points on Thursday.  It will hold a rally at Central Shaheed Minar on November 26.

"We will inform the people once again of what we have told the government in the last five years about the plant," he mentioned, urging all to join the rally. Prof Anu added that they would announce a programme with the Indian people to save the world's largest mangrove forest that protects around 4 crore people from natural disasters. 

Alleging that a section of businessmen are plotting to grab the forest through setting up bill boards and factories, he slammed the individuals and institutions advocating the construction of the power plant.

After the rally, the people present there brought out a procession that marched from Shahbagh to Azimpur.