"The opposition is trying to mar government efforts to build the nation," Khaleda told a public rally in the RC College ground at Patarhat in Barisal, which coincided with AL's countrywide hartal, called to kick off a drive to oust the government.

"The Awami League president (Sheikh Hasina) told a Chittagong public meeting in 1986 her party would never join hands with autocrats, but closed ranks with the Jatiya Party (Ershad) in a few months. The party (AL) proved a traitor," Khaleda said.

The flow of foreign funds and inward remittances that she said slowed to a crawl during AL's tenure increased during the rule of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) that heads a four-party alliance.

"The Awami League distributed only nine ambulances during its rule, but the coalition has already handed out 300 ambulances," the BNP chairperson said in a litany of success stories of the alliance, voted into office in 2001.

Khaleda, who faces an oust-the-government agitation by the main opposition that launched a campaign to forge a broad unity, accused the AL of spreading disorder in education and equipping students with firearms before it lost power.

"The alliance restored discipline to education," she said with a pledge that her government would recruit more teachers and doctors for people's benefit in rural areas.

She said the coalition took up projects, including construction of 71 more educational institutions, to develop the region that she alleged the AL turned into a den of criminals.

Khaleda promised that Mehendiganj would be linked with Barisal district headquarters by road.

Upazila BNP President Rafiqul Islam Sabu presided over the rally, also addressed by Home Minister Altaf Hossain Choudhury, Water Resources Minister Hafizuddin Ahmed, State Minister for Religious Affairs Mosharef Hossain Shahjahan, State Minister for Cultural Affairs Selima Rahman and Barisal Mayor Mojibur Rahman Sarwar.

The prime minister inaugurated a power supply facility in Mehendiganj, provided by the Rural Electrification Board (REB) through a submarine cable link to the national grid.

A Tk 31.56 core project was earlier launched with assistance from the World Bank for power supply to 32,965 users -- 3,462 of them were given connections.

State Minister for Power Iqbal Hasan Mahmud was present at the event, organised by Barisal Polly Bidyut Samity-1 of the REB.