2,500 trucks of imports stranded in West Bengal

Importers are facing a huge loss as 2,500 truckloads of goods have been stranded in Mahadipur Land Port in West Bengal's Malda district for the past week due to inadequate space in the warehouse at Sonamasjid Land Port in Chapainawabganj where the imports are to be unloaded.
The delay is likely to affect the products' quality and destroy the perishable items, said importers. Moreover, the businessmen are additionally paying the transporters Tk 1,000 per truck for a day of delay, which will eventually raise the retail prices of the goods, said Abdul Wahed, president of the Chapainawabganj Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The stranded trucks are laden with onions, food grains, fruits, poultry feed, and stone, said importers.
At present, goods from around 280 trucks can be unloaded into the warehouse at Sonamasjid Land Port, located in Shibagnj upazila, every day, according to Panama Port Link Limited, the port's private operator. Talking to The Daily Star, Abdul Wahed said its capacity should be increased to store goods of around 1,000 trucks.
Against this backdrop, the Malda Merchants Chamber of Commerce of West Bengal has sent a letter dated July 30 to the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) to solve the problem immediately.
It also dispatched the letter to the chairman of National Board of Revenue (NBR), chairman of Bangladesh Land Port Authority, deputy commissioner of Chapainawabganj, customs authority, and other high officials, and business bodies of the two countries.In the letter, the Indian business leaders recommended that Indian trucks carrying goods for Bangladesh be allowed to be unloaded at the private warehouses of the Bangladeshi importers during this period of the year when import-export activities peak.
Abdul Wahed, also an FBCCI director, said the government should make a temporary arrangement so that the stranded trucks could arrive soon.
He recommended that the Panama Port Link Limited authorities appoint additional employees and keep the port open from dawn to dusk as per international schedule to solve the problem temporarily. He also urged the higher authorities to allow import-export activities on Friday.
Jagonnath Kumar Saha, deputy manager (administration) of Panama Port Link Limited, said they had sent a proposal to the NBR for acquiring 20 acres of land to increase the capacity of the warehouse.
After getting the letter, Chapainawabganj Deputy Commissioner Sardar Sarafat Ali has asked Shibganj upazila nirbahi officer to take necessary action.