Cattle Trade In Border Areas
Home issues guidelines to ensure revenue collection
The home ministry has issued guidelines to give legal shape to the entry of cattle in the country through informal channels making mandatory trading of cattle at the government-approved bits or khatals, temporary shelters for cattle brought into the country at border areas.
The move was taken to ensure revenue collection and better management in trade of cattle brought into the country from neighbouring countries, particularly from India, said officials of home ministry and National Board of Revenue.
The ministry issued the guidelines last week.
In absence of such guidelines, the government has lost huge revenues over the years, they said.
According to the guidelines, cattle must be traded at the government-approved bits or khatals.
Any individual or private organisation can set up khatals near the border out post by taking permission from the government, the guidelines said.
No one will be allowed to operate any sub-khatals under approved khatals.
Every year, tens of thousands of cattle, mostly cows and goats, are brought into Bangladesh through informal channels from India as there is no formal cattle trade between the two countries.
After arrival of the cattle in various ways, the revenue board legalises the trade of the cattle after collecting customs duty for each cattle following some process, officials said.
As per the process, the revenue board first takes the abandoned cattle under its custody with the help of Border Guard Bangladesh, then confiscates those animals after conducting a summery trial and finally sells those through auction.
The cattle are gathered at a place, known as bit or khatal, established under an order of the home ministry, for sales. Currently, there are 12 such bits in the border districts.
In absence of guidelines, many politically or financially influential people operate some more bits without approval of the ministry and the government loses huge revenue, home ministry officials said.
In last year, the revenue board collected around Tk 100 crore from the sector and the amount would be much more if the trade could be done through authorised bits, they said.
Usually, cattle smugglers buy the animals which they bring into the country.
The customs duty, however, is collected at the cattle corridors of the NBR. There are around 25 cattle corridors in the country.
The revenue board collects Tk 500 for each cow and buffalo, Tk 200 for each goat, ship and similar type of animals and Tk 6,000 for camel, horse and alike animals, said Santosh Soren, assistant commissioner and divisional
officer of customs, excise and VAT office in Naogaon.
As there is no legal arrangement for importing cattle from India and cattle import is not prohibited in the import policy of Bangladesh, so the revenue board legalise the animals (brought into the country through informal channels) after collecting duty, he said.
A high official of the home ministry told New Age that the government formulated the guidelines to bring all such cattle under legal shape as many cattle are entering into the country without paying any duty.
Bangladesh has several times requested India for legalising cattle import in order to prevent smuggling as it creates huge problems in border management, he said.
The commerce ministry has been discussing with India for long to make the cattle import legal, he said.
According to the guidelines, an applicant will have to have own or leased land at border area, have to be registered businessman with having taxpayer identification number and business identification number for setting up khatal.
Convicted in criminal and smuggling case and accused in inter-country crimes will not be eligible for running khatals, it said. Interested people will have to apply to the deputy commissioner of the district administration.
The home ministry will approve the application after proper scrutiny made by upazila, district and regional smuggling prevention taskforce committees.
The duration of a bit will be one year and it will be renewable.
The revenue board will collect applicable duty for the cattle sold at the bit.
-With New Age input
