Ports, transports at a standstill

Export and import activities suffered severe disruptions for the third day on July 20 amid transport problems because of violence centring the quota reform movement and internet shutdown by the government.

The deadlock affected industrial production and shipment of exportable goods from the ports, especially Chattogram port, which handles roughly 90 percent of Bangladesh's international trade.

Truck and lorry drivers are reluctant to ply their vehicles, for which deliveries of the construction sector's raw materials could not be taken from the port, creating a backlog in production and delivery of the final products.

"Production is being severely hampered as workers, technicians and engineers cannot come to work for the curfew," said Tapan Sengupta, deputy managing director of BSRM.

No raw materials could be received from the port as logistics service providers do not want to risk their vehicles being vandalised, he said.

"We could not even reach products to dealers and clients over the past week," he added.

Almost all steel mills have suspended production, said Jahangir Alam, president of Bangladesh Steel Manufacturers Association.

The mills are unable to receive raw materials from the port and are having to pay storage rent daily, he said. Similarly, no revenue has been earned over the past week but bank loan interest will still have to be paid, he added.

The sufferings of industries such as steel and cement will affect development activities, including the real estate sector, he said.

According to Alam, the effect will be apparent after a couple of months when the rise in production costs will be passed onto consumers.
If production of steel and cement is hampered, its effect directly falls on the construction sector, particularly housing, as these are the major raw materials, said FR Khan, managing director of bti, a leading developer.

"If their raw material delivery is delayed by one day, it results in a delay of two months for housing," he said, adding, "Any additional cost will affect the housing sector."

"We have not been getting any raw materials from the steel and cement sector during last one week," he said.

Traders of Chattogram's wholesale hub of Khatunganj said nearly 2,500 traders sold little to nothing on  July 20 as no vehicle could reach the trading hub.

"We failed to release imported goods like edible oil, onion, ginger and other commodities," trader Abdur Razzak told The Daily Star.

"All import-export consignments remain stuck in the port as all activities have remained suspended since Thursday evening," said Mohammad Fyzur Rahman, commissioner of Chattogram Custom House.

Moreover, there is no scope to enter data on the website of the National Board of Revenue without the internet, he added.

An official of Mongla port said that goods were being unloaded there but there was none to receive those.

The internet blackout has also affected private inland container depots (ICD).

An official of KDS Logistic, a private ICD at Sitakunda, said that they failed to ship 14 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of containers since Friday night.

No goods-laden vehicle is plying on the roads, except those carrying essential commodities, as the owners do not want to take the risk, said Khandker Enayet Ullah, secretary general of Road Transport Owners' Association.

The protesters are very violent and set fire to vehicles without any remorse, he said.

Against this backdrop, the transport sector is facing losses of at least Tk 300 crore per day, he said.

According to him, around one lakh buses and 3.5 lakh trucks ply the country everyday but all are now passing idle times.