Traders want vessel rent, port charge cut at Pangaon terminal

Businesses on Tuesday suggested a roadmap that can be prepared by the government to make the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal cost effective for the importers and exporters so that they become interested to use the port, officials of the National Board of Revenue said.
Reduction of container vessel rent and various port charges, frequent and scheduled movement of vessels, incentive package for traders, security of containers at waterways and elimination of harassment by the customs intelligence may be included in the roadmap, they said.
At an inter-ministerial meeting held at the revenue board, business leaders also made a proposal for making mandatory the imports of cotton, yarn and capital machinery for use in and around Dhaka through Pangaon, they added.
The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the apex trade body, will send the name of products which can be included on the mandatory list by the next two weeks after consultation with the importers and exporters.
The revenue board arranged the meeting to find out ways to make the terminal fully vibrant as it has remained almost idle for the last 24 months due to lukewarm response from exporters and importers to use the port because of higher cost compared with transportation cost through roads and railways.
The government inaugurated the terminal at Dhaka’s Keraniganj on the riverbank of Buriganga in November 2013 to ease pressure of cargo movement on the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway and railways through transportation of exported and imported goods through waterways.
‘FBCCI president Abdul Matlub Ahmad suggested a roadmap to be prepared by the revenue board to make the terminal fully operational,’ an NBR official told New Age after the meeting.
Matlub also proposed formation of a high-powered committee to look after the issues related to the terminal, he said.
Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association former vice-president Mohammad Hatem told New Age that the government might make the imports of cotton, yarn and capital machinery, which user base is in the Dhaka region, mandatory through Pangaon.
But the major issue is the cost of container vessel and other port facilities, he said.
The NBR officials said that the representatives from different trade bodies asked the revenue board to contact with the shipping ministry for reduction of vessel rent which the ministry last week increased by 46.66 per cent despite opposition by the importers and exporters.
The vessel rent set by the shipping ministry is flexible as it is usually determined by both the parties considering demand and supply, ministry officials said.
The revenue board may also consider making imports of fruit, toys and raw materials, which enjoy bonded warehouse facility, mandatory through the terminal, the revenue board officials said.
Shipping ministry representatives informed the meeting that a notification would be issued by a week reducing the different port charges including loading and unloading charges, container stay charge and crane use charge by 50 per cent to 70 per cent.
Pangaon terminal manager Ahamedul Karim Chowdhury told New Age that hopefully the terminal would be more functional following the initiatives taken by the government.

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