Container congestion feared at Ctg port amid limited delivery
Loading and unloading of bulk cargoes and containers to and from the vessels are going on as normal at the Chattogram port, which handles 93 per cent of the country's consignments, with the view to keeping the supply chain smooth amidst the ongoing countrywide movement restrictions.
However, only the delivery of commodity, emergency medicine and service-related materials are being allowed as the Chattogram Customs House operates on a limited scale.
Officers from different departments like Traffic, Accounts and Marine have been tasked with assessment of the selected goods for release, according to Md Omar Faruq, secretary of the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA).
However, the curtailed delivery poses to create another problem of container congestion.
Around 5,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of import containers were delivered in 24 hours until 8am on March 26 before the holiday began. The number came down at 1,200 TEUs yesterday.
Congestion has already been created at the Kamalapur inland container depot in Dhaka as importers are not taking delivery of their goods.
CPA Member Mohammad Zafar Alam confirmed it, saying the ICD has already exceeded its capacity.
Until yesterday afternoon, 4,700 TEUs of containers were lying at the Dhaka ICD, which has the capacity to store at best 4,000 TEUs.
Finding no space, they even kept around 120 TEUs import containers at the space designated for export containers, said Ahmedul Karim Chowhdury, head of Kamalapur ICD.
Though the situation at the port is under control as it still has enough space, it can change because of the poor delivery, said Alam, adding that if they cannot send the Dhaka ICD-bound containers they would occupy space in the port.
Transport of import-laden containers from Chattogram Port to Dhaka ICD through railway was suspended from Saturday afternoon to Sunday evening.
After the last cargo train left Chattogram port for Dhaka ICD on Saturday afternoon, two trains loaded with import-laden containers were stuck at the Chattogram Goods Port Yard.
One of the trains was due to start for Dhaka last night, Shadequr Rahman, divisional railway manager in Chattogram, told The Daily Star.
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