Hili land port packed with potential but lacks facilities

Although  the Hili land port in Dinajpur's Hakimpur upazila has a tendency to  exceed its annual revenue target, things may be different this year as  traders are opting for other ports with better facilities, according to  local experts.

With a current storage capacity of 2,000 tonnes,  the port has high potential to facilitate bilateral trade with  neighbouring India due to its geographic location.

"However,  traders are now turning to other ports with better facilities," said  Rabiul Islam, general secretary for customs and port affairs of Hili  Land Port Importers-Exporters Group.

Around 95 clearing and  forwarding (C&F) agents and 85 traders once regularly used Hili land  port to conduct their import and export activities but now, most are  using multiple ports.

About 15 years after Bangladesh gained  independence, both the Indian and local government took initiatives to  establish the port in fiscal 1985-86. However, it was not officially  inaugurated until 2002.

"And ever since the beginning, there has  been a trend of imports exceeding exports," said Abdul Aziz, former  vice-president of a C&F agents' association at the port.

But  as traders faced a number of difficulties, including narrow approach  roads on both sides of the border, the government took a major step in  2005 by appointing Panama Hili Port Link to handle port operations.

After  developing the necessary infrastructure on 22 acres of land,  cross-border trade under private-public partnerships finally began on  November 26, 2007.

The Hili land port features a warehouse, open  stackyard, truck terminal, weighbridge, standby power supply, an  administrative building, security posts and boundary wall.

These  facilities are mostly used to handle import shipments of stone, maize,  wheat, cumin, onion, chili and other items while only a small quantity  of rice bran oil is exported to India, traders said.

Besides, the  trade balance between Bangladesh and India at Hili land port has not  seen any significant improvement as the present infrastructure is  inadequate.

"But the situation is the same in both countries," said trader Gausul Azam.

Around  300 trucks come to Bangladesh every day but the port has insufficient  facilities to handle such a large number of shipments, he added.

Another trader, Abdul Aziz, said road connectivity issues in both countries was a bit challenging to navigate.

In  the Indian part, there is only a single road stretching between a truck  stop to the land port that needs to be widened immediately.

The  road on Bangladesh's side, starting from the land port to Panama Hili  Port Link Ltd, also needs to be widened as the distance between the two  points is around one kilometre, he said.

Meanwhile, the situation worsens during the rainy season as much of the road is still earthen.

Against this backdrop, traffic congestion on the approach roads are a common sight in both India and Bangladesh.

Regarding  the import and export disparity, Aziz said although there were many  items with export potential, Indian traders always show little or no  interest in them.

While molasses was a major export item from  Bangladesh to India just a few years ago, the situation has since  changed with rice bran oil currently being the sole item being shipped  through the port.

"This is because we now need to import molasses to make cattle feed as domestic supplies are insufficient," Aziz said.

In  2020-21, the revenue target at Hili land port was set at Tk 292 crore,  which it easily exceeded with Tk 399 crore thanks to import fees and  other charges.

But with Covid-19 forcing the country into repeated  economic closures, the port failed to attain its target for the 2019-20  fiscal year.

Citing the success of Banglabandha land port in  Tetulia upazila of Panchagarh, Aziz said numerous items were exported to  India through the port.

So, the government needs to pay close attention to make Hili land port effective enough to exploit it as well, he added.

Hili land port is plagued by mismanagement while customs officials often harass traders as well.

Echoing  the same, local lawmaker Shibli Sadik said Panama Hili Port Link Ltd s  not following the terms and conditions of its agreement to handle port  operations.

This has badly affected bilateral trade of the high potential port.

However,  it is possible to earn almost double the yearly revenue if importers,  exporters and C&F agents can get the maximum benefits.

"So,  the government is planning to accelerate bilateral trade through Hili  land port by establishing facilities such as those at Benapole," he  added.

Contacted, Dulal Chakraborty, manager of operations at  Panama Hili Port Link Ltd, said they were working to expand the port  area.

"We proposed to the government to acquire 20 acres of land,  which is pending," he said, adding that they are jointly working to  resolve all existing problems at the port.

However, he rejected all allegations of corruption and harassment at the port.