Outer Anchorage of Ctg Port: Lax customs’ watch for 9 yrs
The outer anchorage of Chittagong port, the largest entrance to the naval facilities of Bangladesh, has been almost out of the customs' watch for the last nine years.
The crisis that occurred due to manpower shortage and lack of vessels at Customs House Chattogram (CHC) is turning outer anchorage a safe passage for smugglers, said insiders.
According to the CHC, around 70 percent of the total imported goods including coal, oil, edible oil, scrap ships, bitumen and other various consumer goods enter the country through the outer anchorage.
But, the CHC lost its capacity to monitor this vital point of Bangladeshi naval route nine years ago when two of its patrol boats -- PB Safen and PB Somikkha -- became unusable, said an official.
Besides, acute manpower shortage is another major reason behind the present situation at the outer anchorage, he added.
The CHC has a total of 10 officials at present but the organisation needs at least 50 people to properly conduct activities at the outer anchorage, he said.
Seeking anonymity, a former official of CHC said around 40 vessels dock at the outer anchorage every day that were supposed to be checked by the CHC officials. But, with the existing manpower, the CHC can check two vessels a day at best.
Contacted, a customs official, seeking anonymity, said they visit the vessels docked at the outer anchorage very rarely.
Instead, the CHC issues entry permit to the vessels inside Bangladesh territory without any checking, he added.
"It is simply not possible for us to visit all the vessels docked at the outer anchorage and issue clearance due to the manpower shortage and lack of vessels," he said.
Talking to The Daily Star, another official of the CHC said the outer anchorage turned into a safe haven for smugglers. This passage was being used to bring illicit drugs and other illegal goods in the country.
In order to prevent smuggling, customs must purchase new ships and increase its manpower and other equipment, he added.
Both the divisions -- F Division and Rummage Division -- of the CHC remained almost dysfunctional due to this crisis, said sources.
F Division approves permission of arrival and departure for vessels into the Bangladesh maritime territory after checking the goods the ships carry whereas Rummage Division conducts anti-smuggling activities in 52 nautical miles of Kutubdia to Mirsharai coastal area.
As per the rules, the CHC officials must visit the vessels, seize illegal goods if found, and issue clearance to the vessels that dock at the anchorage.
Contacted, Fakhrul Alam, commissioner of the CHC, said there were irregularities in the system for years.
About a report of The Daily Star on how the two patrol boats of the CHC never became functional after repeated attempts for repair, he said, "Do you think it is possible for me to investigate former commissioners who are now my bosses? Is there no chance of me being biased if I conduct a probe?
"Either some committee, not related to customs, should conduct probe into whatever happened here or NBR [National Board of Revenue] should conduct a probe."
Asked, Aminul Islam, deputy commissioner of the CHC, said they visit vessels at the outer anchorage by rented boats when they receive information about smuggling.
Khondaker Muhammad Aminur Rahman, member (customs audit, modernisation and international trade) of NBR, said as the anti-smuggling activities of customs came to a halt smugglers now consider the outer anchorage a safer passage than the port gate.
"Smuggling could not be prevented with limited vehicles and manpower, the customs should keep monitoring the outer anchorage for the sake of this country's safety," he added.
At least 10 speed boats and five patrol boats should immediately be bought for the customs to equip it with proper force, he added.
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