Dhaka, Oct 16 (IANS): A boat carrying Rohingya migrants capsized off the coast of Bangladesh, leaving 12 dead and over 20 missing, a police official said on Monday.

Captain Shahidul Islam, commander of the Bangladesh Coast Guard eastern zone, told Efe news that at least 21 people had been rescued after the accident, which took place near the Majer Char area at around 5.30 a.m.

"So far 12 bodies have been recovered, including four children and a man. The rest are women," he said.

According to survivors, at least 50 people were on the boat when it capsized.

On October 8, 34 Rohingya migrants were killed in a similar boat accident in Naf river that separates Myanmar and Bangladesh.

According to an Intelligence official in the Cox's Bazar district, the number of bodies recovered since August 25 has climbed to 183, although the actual number of Rohingyas who have died at sea could be higher.

The Rohingya exodus to Bangladesh continues almost two months after the Myanmar army launched an offensive in Rakhine following a series of attacks on government posts by Rohingya rebels.

The military offensive has been described by the United Nations High Commissioner as a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing".

According to the latest figures, around 537,000 Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh in the last seven weeks.