First river-borne food shipment goes to India today
Bangladesh will send food items to India for the first time through waterways today with the maiden shipment of 25,000 cartons of litchi drinks of local conglomerate Pran.
After being loaded at Shitalakshya in Narsingdi, the ship will start to sail via Narayanganj-Sheikbaria of Khulna, said Kamruzzaman Kamal, director for marketing of Pran-RFL Group.
The ship will travel around 710 kilometres to reach Kolkata on March 24, he told The Daily Star.
The ship will start its journey under the protocol on inland water transit and trade between Bangladesh and India and Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, state minister for shipping, will attend the flag-off ceremony.
However, it is not the first time for a Bangladeshi company to use waterways for export of goods to India.
Premier Cement, a leading local cement manufacturer, opened the door for Bangladesh on September 3 last year with the shipment of 50 tonnes of cement to India's north-eastern state of Tripura.
Now the cement maker sends five to six consignments a day.
Pran has taken all required permission from Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority to export food products to India, said Mobarak Hossen Mojumder, deputy director for public relations at Pran.
"The consignment will be a symbolic one. Exporters and importers will be hugely benefited from the use of river routes as a single ship can carry products of nearly 50 trucks."
"River routes cost 30 per cent lower than the roads. Besides, there is also a risk for the goods to get damaged and loose quality in case of exports through roads," said Kamal.
"It is quite environment friendly also."
For road transports, businesses have to face the hassles of managing and renting trucks and it increases manifold in case of disruptions on the way, which is common phenomenon, he said.
Pran has been exporting food products to India since 1997. In the first shipment, it sent chanachur, a traditional snack item, to Tripura.
Pran exports around 150 products to India, including fruit drinks, chips, snacks, sauce, ketchup, noodles, jelly and spices.
It sends its items to 28 Indian states, including Assam, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujrat, Tripura, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Export through river route has huge potential of bilateral trade now, Kamal said.
There is a huge demand for Bangladeshi processed food products in India, especially in the West Bengal and seven sister states, he said.
Pran is constantly trying to supply products that meet the needs of the people of India and its exports to the country is growing at an average rate of 10 per cent a year, he said.
The export volume to India came down slightly since the beginning of the ongoing pandemic, he said.
However, the export activities are getting its momentum back again now.
It is a matter of pride for Bangladesh as the products of Pran are now competing with the renowned brands and making a place in Indian super shops and retail stores, he said.
Pran's 500 products are now exported to 145 countries, Kamal said.