First transhipment from India arrives at Chattogram port

The Chattogram port has received the first shipment of goods from India as part of a 2018 agreement on using the ports and land routes of Bangladesh to transport goods to northeastern India.

The shipment of four containers is part of a trial run meandering from a port in Kolkata through Bangladesh via the Chattogram port to the northeastern states of India.

Bangladeshi vessel MV Senjuti arrived at the outer-anchorage of Chattogram port in the early hours of Tuesday, the port’s Secretary Omar Faruq said.

Carrying goods weighing 100 tonnes altogether, the ship contained TMT bars and pulse products.

The ship left Kolkata’s Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port for Chattogram on Sunday, reports bdnews24.com.

“After these containers are unloaded, they will be transported to India’s Tripura across the Akhaura border by road on trailers,” Faruq said.

Necessary arrangements were made for the trial run, he said. The ships arriving from India under this agreement will follow general berthing rules and pay port dues, pilotage fees and any other associated costs.

In this arrangement, the Chattogram and Mongla ports will be used to unload the goods.

Chattogram Port Customs will collect transport fees, charged on seven different accounts including processing, transhipment, security, administrative, escort, container scanning and electric seal. Port authorities, on the other hand, will collect the tariffs.