UNB, Dhaka :
Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan on Sunday sought cooperation from port users in keeping the newly-installed
Pangaon Inland Container Terminal operational.
“The Shipping Ministry will provide all facilities to the port users to keep the Pangaon terminal operational,” he said while exchanging views with the terminal users in Keraniganj.
The Ministry of Shipping organised the meeting with the terminal users at Pangaon Container Terminal Bhaban to find out a way how the terminal could be popularised so that importers and exporters increasingly use the water route between Dhaka and Chittagong Port for transporting their goods.
Chaired by Shipping Secretary Syed Monzurul Islam, the meeting was addressed, among others, by State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid,
Chittagong Port Authority Chairman Rear Admiral Nizamuddin Ahmed, BIWTA chairman Dr M Samsuddoha Khondaker and vice chairman of Bangladesh Container Shipping Corporation M Shamimul Haque.
Leaders of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), BGMEA, BKMEA, Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association and Bangladesh Container Shipping Association joined the meeting.
Speaking as the chief guest, Shajahan Khan said the government has already brought two ships to carry containers on the water route between Dhaka and Chittagong Port.
“We’ll collect three more ships by mid-year. One will come from abroad while another two from Khulna Ship Dockyard,” he said.
The Shipping Minister said facilities must be increased in the port area to keep the Pangaon Terminal operational, and an integrated plan should be taken in this regard.
“We must carry out dredging on regular basis on rivers to ensure smooth navigability of the rivers,” he added.
In November 2013, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal on the bank of the Buriganga River at Pangaon in South Keraniganj.
The Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and the Chittagong Port Authority jointly built the terminal spending Tk 1.54 billion.
The terminal is expected to play a vital role in the country’s economic development by ushering in a new horizon in the transportation of exported and imported goods through waterways.
The project aims to help ease the pressure of cargo movement on the Dhaka-Chittagong railway and highway corridors.
