The ongoing political unrest and the Opposition’s hartal programmes have severely affected trade and commerce, including maritime trade, exports and imports. As a result, the country has lost crores of takas in revenue while businessmen, too, are losing crores everyday. Sources said the prevailing political situation has created tension among local businessmen. The trade and commerce in Chittagong is severely hampered due to the consecutive hartals called by the opposition.
Owners of RMG factories are bearing the brunt of the political situation as most of their shipments have been delayed due to the recent hartals. Many of them are exporting their goods through air to avoid the hassles of hartal.
BGMEA director Syed Najrul Islam said, “Most of the big RMG exporters in RMG have no way but to opt for air shipments to delivery the products within the promised date. They are incurring huge losses.”
Referring to the loss of his own company Well Fashion Limited, Syed Najrul Islam said, ‘I have to pay USD 5 lakh more for air shipments. Due to the recent political turmoil in our country, we are paying more dollars to the ships waiting at the Chittagong Port.”
Mahafujur Rahman, director of the CCCI owner of Mostafa Garments, said, “We have to export RMG goods worth USD 2 lakh through air. It is reducing our profit. If we miss the schedule, the buyers will cancel our orders.”
Mohammad Nasiruddin Chowdhury, first vice-president of the BGMEA, alleged that political unrest has tarnished
the country’s image problem in foreign countires. The foreign buyers have become reluctant to buy Bangladeshi goods, he added.
“The RMG sector is facing the crisis of ‘discount, cancellation and deferred payment’ by foreign parties. It is an ominous sign for the country. Many of the foreign buyers have started to cancel the orders from Bangladesh,” he said.
On the other hand, leaders of business community said that wholesellers of Khatungonj, Chaktai and AsadGanj, the most important commercial hubs of the country as well as Chittagong, lost Tk. 200 to 300 crore each day during the recent hartals.
Sayed Sagir Ahamed, president of the Khatoongonj Trade Association said, “At present, the hartals called by the opposition has made Khatungonj, Chaktai and Asadganj dead business hubs. No trade and commerce takes place in the hartal days now.”
The country’s exports and imports are decreasing in the last three months of the current fiscal year, compared to the same period during the last fiscal year.
Shuresh Chandra Biswas, additional commissioner of the Chittagong Custom House, said, “In the last three months of the current year, political unrest has hampered the import and export of the country. The national poll will be held in the current fiscal year. As a result, import and export are likely to be hampered, causing a decline in the revenue earning of the Chittagong Custom House. The revenue earning will increase after the country achieves some sort of political stability.”
According to sources, the Chittagong Custom House authorities have fixed the import revenue target through the Chittagong port. However, during July to September this year, the Chittagong Custom House has failed to collect the targeted amount.
The sources said that the Chittagong port, which deals with 80 per cent of exports and imports of Bangladesh, is suffering from disruption of work during the current political turmoil, particularly during the hartals.
Syed Forhad Uddin, secretary of the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), said: “There are a total of 35 ships are in the port. Of these, loading and unloading is continuing at 27 ships, while eight are waiting at the outer anchorage.”
“A total of 515 containers were delivered last night on an emergency basis. The importers took the delivery on their own liabilities,” he added. Sources said the CPA used to take special measures to continue the operational activities of the port during hartals and political unrest. However, the recent hartals have hamperd the work at the port, they added.
CCCI president Mahbubul Alam said: “The port city’s trade is incurring a loss of more than Tk. 1000 crore daily, including Tk. 200 crore in the production sector, Tk. 200 crore in exports, Tk. 400 crore in imports, Tk. 180 crore in the garments sector and Tk. 20 crore in the frozen food sector. Besides, the government is losing Tk. 140 crore of revenue income per day for hartal.”
-With The Independent input
