New ships can reduce cargo pressure on roads, railways

An article titled '300 new lighter ships likely next year' was published in the Financial Express on December 26. The article said that the government is considering to allow more than 300 lighterage vessels in 2019 to facilitate transportation of increasing volumes of export-import cargoes.

It is a timely decision as increased number of vessels will help overcome the supply-demand mismatch and also reduce burden on railways and roads. Some 500 more lighterage vessels are required to ferry imported goods from the country's premier port. At the moment, there are 2,550 lighterage ships operating on different routes.

The government has rightly given priority to the programme. Accordingly, a committee headed by the director general of the shipping department will soon be formed by the shipping ministry to revise the ceiling on building new lighter ships. The committee may submit a report to the ministry by the end of January or beginning of February 2019.

Lighterage vessels can be helpful for movement of cargoes. It will save time as waterways do not face traffic congestion as opposed to the roads and highways. Also, cargoes often face delays while being transported on trains. This is not the case with waterways.

Additionally, if a significant number of cargoes are moved through the waterways, the pressure on roads will be minimised.

If the government approves this plan, improving the navigability of all the major rivers should also be considered.

Akibul Javed,

Indira Road, Dhaka