Business Desk :
The Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) has launched the first-ever Mongla-Chittagong feeder service recently aiming to ensure hassle-free transportation of goods by avoiding traffic jam on roads to facilitate trade boost.
The main goal of the initiative is to meet the growing demand for transportation of containerised cargoes from the country’s south-western districts to Chittagong.
Praising the initiative, Md. Rezaul Karim, Chairman, Shippers’ Council of Bangladesh congratulated the BSC for launching MV Banglar Shikha as a weekly feeder vessel in Mongla-Chittagong route in both ends.
The service, a long-felt demand of the countries business community, for the first time has been initiated by the state-owned organisation to carry exportable goods from the region by fulfilling all formalities relating to shipment, SCB chief said.
He said the exporters of frozen foods, raw jute and producers of jute goods are presently transporting their goods by road that often faces serious uncertainty due to traffic congestion.
The exporters and producers of this sector are adversely affected while carrying goods by road due to shortage of ferries. Even in most of the cases, they fail their shipping schedules for uncertainty of the road disturbances. Moreover, they had to pay additional charges for carrying goods by road.
BSC has initially fixed freight tariff at $120 for each 20-foot container, $150 for refer container and $90 for empty container.
Karim, Chairman, Shippers’ Council of Bangladesh, further opined that the freight tariff fixed by the BSC is quite high. BSC may reconsider the tariff freight again for the greater interest of the country’s trade and export.
