DHAKA -- Bangladeshi police seized more than 62,000 rifle bullets and 114 kilograms of suspected explosives in what they said was the biggest haul of such items in the country.

Police seized the materials hours before an opposition-led strike, called to protest deteriorating law and order and tax rises, paralyzed much of Bangladesh on Saturday, Reuters reported.

Police said on Saturday they found the Chinese-made ammunition and explosive-like material during raids late on Friday night in two hideouts of suspected militants in Bogra district, 150 km (90 miles) north of Dhaka.

"This is the biggest ever haul of illegal ammunitions and explosives in the country," a police officer at Kahalu area, in Bogra, said on condition of anonymity.

Bogra district administrator Rafiqur Mohammad said on Saturday army experts had been called in to examine the huge quantity of a black substance that could be an explosive material.

"We are investigating ... it is too early to blame anyone," one police officer said. He said police arrested the wife of a suspected criminal "with political links" but would not identify him.

Mostly Muslim Bangladesh says it never shelters or supports any militant groups, and was recently praised by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell for its moderate Islamic standing and strong stance against terrorism.

In the capital Dhaka, authorities deployed thousands of extra police to prevent outbreaks of violence in the city during the strike, which was hampered by heavy monsoon showers.

The strike halted deliveries from the country's main Chittagong port.

"The country is passing through a very bad time. Killings, rape and harassment of opposition leaders and activists have become order of the day," said Abdul Jalil, general secretary of main opposition party Awami League. "We must protest by all means," he told reporters.

Awami called the dawn-to-dusk stoppage in part to protest against what it termed a "tax heavy" 2003-04 (July-June) budget, pushing up prices of consumer goods including sugar and salt.

Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, secretary-general of ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party, has accused Awami League of trying to "create chaos and cripple the country's emerging economy".

According to police and newspapers, 12 people are killed on average every day across the country by armed militants, some backed by political groups.

Opposition parties call frequent strikes in Bangladesh, ignoring requests by business communities to seek other means of protest. They say each a day of a strike costs the impoverished country more than $60 million in lost production and exports.