NEW DELHI, March 27 (Xinhua) -- At least one person was killed and 50 others including 20 policemen were injured Monday when police opened fire to quell a protest in south India's Andhra Pradesh, Indo-Asian News Service reported.

    Hundreds of local fishermen Monday gathered in Visakhapatnam district to protest the building of a private port there since leaders of the fishing community had been there on hunger strike for two days.

    The protest turned into violent when the police swooped down on the protest leaders. Television footage showed police personnel chasing and beating up protesters while some villagers were seen beating up policemen with sticks.

    One person was killed when the police opened fire at the crowd while dozens were injured as the police fired tear gas.

    Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leaders alleged that two protesters, including a woman, had been killed in the police firing.

    At least 20 policemen were injured when people threw stones at them to denounce the arrest of the leaders.

    The authorities have imposed prohibitory orders in the area and detained 50 people, including leaders of Left and opposition parties protesting against building the port.

    The port, the first private port project in the state with an investment of 20 billion rupees (465.12 million U.S. dollars) for the first phase, is designed to displace 3,000 fishermen and four other villages. The government and the private developer were accused of launching the work without accepting the demands for relief and rehabilitation.

    If finished, the port will be the deepest and only port in India that can accommodate vessels of even 200,000 DWT (dead weight tonnage). Enditem