A Correspondent :
The staff for operating four container scanners installed at the three gates of Chittagong Port refrained from working for an hour on Tuesday.
They protested in fear of losing their jobs as the contract between their firm, appointed to operate the scanners, and the port authorities is coming to an end.
Due to the work stoppage starting at 3:30pm, around 400 container-carrying vehicles waiting for scanning before getting out of the port got stuck at the gates.
Chittagong Customs House in 2009 installed three scanners along with a mobile scanner at gate 4, gate 5 and gate 2, and appointed Societe General De Surveillance (SGS) Bangladesh to operate those for six years.
The contract was renewed in 2015 for two more years. Later it was renewed again for seven and a half months this year. “But the contract for the mobile scanner will expire this midnight (October 17),” said Mizanur Rahman, SGS manager (scanner operation). “So, 16 workers overseeing the operation, stopped working as they feared that they would lose their jobs.”
Soon, 45 other workers, operating the three other scanners, also stopped working as their contracts would expire in April next year, he said.
The staff demonstrated as the customs authorities are now planning to float a tender for appointing a new firm, alleged Mizanur. Contacted, Mohammad Raich Uddin, joint commissioner of Chittagong Customs House, said they are planning to float a tender for appointing an operator as well as introducing a separate scanning division.
The staff for operating four container scanners installed at the three gates of Chittagong Port refrained from working for an hour on Tuesday.
They protested in fear of losing their jobs as the contract between their firm, appointed to operate the scanners, and the port authorities is coming to an end.
Due to the work stoppage starting at 3:30pm, around 400 container-carrying vehicles waiting for scanning before getting out of the port got stuck at the gates.
Chittagong Customs House in 2009 installed three scanners along with a mobile scanner at gate 4, gate 5 and gate 2, and appointed Societe General De Surveillance (SGS) Bangladesh to operate those for six years.
The contract was renewed in 2015 for two more years. Later it was renewed again for seven and a half months this year. “But the contract for the mobile scanner will expire this midnight (October 17),” said Mizanur Rahman, SGS manager (scanner operation). “So, 16 workers overseeing the operation, stopped working as they feared that they would lose their jobs.”
Soon, 45 other workers, operating the three other scanners, also stopped working as their contracts would expire in April next year, he said.
The staff demonstrated as the customs authorities are now planning to float a tender for appointing a new firm, alleged Mizanur. Contacted, Mohammad Raich Uddin, joint commissioner of Chittagong Customs House, said they are planning to float a tender for appointing an operator as well as introducing a separate scanning division.
