Revenue collection by the Dhaka ICD Customs is lagging far behind the target set for the current fiscal following the recent disruption in rail link between the capital and port city.
Attack on railways during recent hartals and blockades by the opposition parties was the main cause of the disruption of train communication, they added.
The authorities of Dhaka Inland Container Depot (ICD) Customs have so far earned only Tk 831crore revenue in the first seven months (July-January) of the current fiscal against the target of Tk 1,214 crore set for the period, showing a deficit of Tk 343 crore.
Earlier, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has fixed the revenue target for the ICD Customs at Tk 2,105 crore for the fiscal 2013-14. “Our revenue collection fall short of the target during July-January period of the current fiscal due to political unrest for the last six months,” Maruful Hasan, Commissioner of Dhaka ICD Customs, told The New Nation yesterday.
He added: Containers with imported goods destined for the Dhaka ICD from Chittagong port remained stuck following disruption in railway connectivity. At least 100 containers to and from Dhaka ICD could not ply on daily basis, causing revenue loss for the department. Political uncertainty also contributed to lower export and import activities last year resulting on the revenue shortfall, he noted.
Maruful Hasan, however, expressed his hope that revenue collection by his department will improve soon following return of stability in the country’s political arena.
The Dhaka ICD, owned jointly by the Bangladesh Railway (BR) and the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), handles around 8.0 per cent cargoes of the Chittagong Port.
