Benapole land port has resumed business after a nine-day-long vacation during Eid-ul-Fitr.
On Sunday morning cargo movement between India and Bangladesh resumed through the port.
But work is slow, since not all customs house, port authority, clearing and forwarding (C&F) and transport agency staff have returned from their vacations.
Abdul Latif, the revenue officer at the Benapole check post cargo department, said export-import had begun full swing at Patrapole and Benapole land ports from the morning.
On Thursday the port was open but no cargo went through as the cargo branch office was moved from the check post that day.
After 10 days of vacation, there was a long tailback of cargo vehicles on both sides, the official said.
Benapole Customs Clearing and Forwarding Agents Association Senior Vice President Nuruzzaman said hundreds of goods-laden trucks were queued up on both sides of the port and normal pace of work was unlikely to normalise before Monday.
Petrapole, on the other side of the border, was on weekly holiday on Sunday, but cargo loading and offloading was going on under special arrangements.
Benapole land port Assistant Director (traffic) Abdul Jalil said handling workers had been asked to speed up unloading imported goods to relieve the pressure on the port.
Customs house Assistant Commissioner Sadhan Kumar Kundu said all customs officers had been asked to clear goods quickly.
“About 70 percent of the raw material used by the nation’s factories comes through Benapole. Customs officers will work overtime and on weekends to reduce the tailback at the port,” he said.
Petrapole C&F Staff Welfare Association Secretary Kartik Chakraborty said hundreds of trucks were lined up at Petrapole up to Bangaon because of the long vacation.
Source: bdnews24
