& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Chittagong port deadlock ends as C&F agents call off strike

Staff Correspondent, ctg
Clearing and forwarding agents withdrew their strike in Chittagong yesterday and returned to work after an NBR delegation pledged to meet their demands at a meeting.
The duty assessment and other activities at the Chittagong Customs House resumed at around 4:00pm, after C&F agents ended a one-and-a-half-day abstention from work.
C&F agents provide services for importers and exporters for quick dispatches of consignments through customs.
A total of 793 TEUs (twenty feet equivalent units) containers were delivered from the Chittagong port on Sunday, the first day of the strike, while around 350 TEUs containers were delivered till yesterday afternoon. Usually 1,500 to 2,000 TEUs containers are delivered from the port a day.
The authorities decided to meet all the demands of the striking agents, Farid Uddin, an NBR member, told reporters in the port city.
“Most of their demands are procedural issues related to different customs rules that had become problems. These usually create debate and problems in customs activities and can be solved through discussions,” he said.
“The crisis was created from misunderstanding between the
parties for the lack of proper interaction."
After a long discussion with the protesters and representatives from trade bodies, PSI companies and other stakeholders, the meeting decided to accept all the logical demands of the C&F agents, Farid said.
The finance minister and the chairman of the National Board of Revenue sent the three-member delegation of NBR to end the stalemate through discussions.
Farid said a forum comprising representatives from all the stakeholders and customs officials would be formed to implement the decisions taken at yesterday's meeting. The panel will also work to solve such problems in future.
Farid stressed improving communication between all stakeholders.
All legal actions, including a fine of Tk 1 lakh against a C&F agent by the customs authority, were withdrawn to end the impasse quickly.
Chittagong Customs C&F Agents Association started the movement on September 5 protesting the legal action against the C&F agent, also a leader of the association.
The association leaders had been blaming the Chittagong Customs Authority for randomly valuing goods and burdening C&F agents with higher fines in the name of irregularities in import and export
procedures violating customs valuation rules and acts.
The agents also demanded a stop to their harassment by customs officials, and damaging of goods by delaying clearance in the name of physical inspection.
No violation of customs rules in valuation of goods and duty assessment were found, Farid said.
On the withdrawal of legal action against the C&F agent, Farid said it was taken for the sake of the country and the customs house.
He said it seemed that the action was not taken through proper assessment.
In a news briefing, C&F Agents Association General Secretary Altaf Hossain Bachchu said they would restart work as all their demands were met.
The earlier demand for withdrawing Chittagong Customs Commissioner Maruful Islam on allegations of misbehavior with C&F agents was not raised at the meeting.
Bachchu said they did not ask for his removal as all their demands were met.
NBR Members Nasir Uddin and Firoz Shah Alam, Customs Commissioner Maruful Islam, Additional Commissioner Motiur Rahman and Syed Musfiqur Rahman, C&F Association President Akhter Hossain and Joint Secretary Quazi Mahmud Imam Biluwerepresentatthe meeting.