A ferry packed with about 300 people has collided with a cargo boat and capsized in a Bangladeshi river, killing 31 people and leaving up to 200 more missing.

A ferry packed with about 200 people capsized in a river in southern Bangladesh today, causing deaths and leaving dozens more missing, authorities said.

Separate clashes between rival political activists and police left one man dead and about 65 people injured, as a major political alliance in Bangladesh staged a nationwide transport blockade today to force electoral reforms, police said.