Transshipment: First batch of Indian goods reaches Mongla port
MV Rishad Rayhan yesterday became the first cargo ship to use the Mongla sea port of Bangladesh under the trial run of transshipment of Indian goods destined for the north-eastern states.
The vessel arrived at the jetty No-9 of the port in the southwestern division in the morning from the Kolkata port under the Agreement on the Use of Chittagong and Mongla Port for Movement of Goods from India, Rear Admiral Mohammad Musa, chairman of the Mongla Port Authority (MPA), told The Daily Star.
"Today, a milestone has been set regarding the transportation of goods with India using the Mongla Port," he said.
According to port sources, the ship has two containers. One container is carrying 16,380 tonnes of iron pipes, while the rest is carrying 8.5 tonnes of prefoam, a detergent foam for use as a pre-soak cleaner.
The containers will go to the Indian states of Assam and Meghalaya using the Tamabil land port in Sylhet and the Bibirbazar Land Port in Cumilla.
Indian Assistant High Commissioner to Bangladesh Inderjit Sagar was present when the ship arrived at the Mongla Port.
All stakeholders will sit soon to find out the challenges, if any, and resolve them, said Abdul Wadud Tarafder, member for harbour and marine at the Mongla port Authority.
Dhaka and Delhi signed a memorandum of understanding on the use of the Chattogram and Mongla ports in 2015, following years of persuasion from India.
The two sides signed an agreement in 2018 and a standard operating procedure (SoP).
According to the SoP, goods reaching Chattogram and Mongla sea ports would be carried by four road, rail, and water routes to Agartala (Tripura) via Akhaura; Dawki (Meghalaya) via Tamabil; Sutarkandi (Assam) via Sheola; and Srimantpur (Tripura) via Bibirbazar.
The first trial run took place in July 2020 through the Chattogram port.
The agreement is expected to further strengthen Bangladesh's friendship and economic ties with India.
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