Army's welcome role in helping business

The breakdown of law and order across the nation in the wake of the Sheikh Hasina government's collapse on August 5 was not something out of the blue. Excesses committed by the police, especially during the anti-discrimination student movement, were reason enough for their becoming a target of public anger. Unsurprisingly, taking advantage of the law and order vacuum thus created, criminals established a reign of terror in the garment belts destroying properties and holding owners, executives and workers of the garment factories to ransom. Of particular concern were reportedly the youth gangs running the so-called jhut (waste garment products) trade rackets in Gazipur, Ashulia, Savar, Dhamrai and Narayanganj as well as in the industrial zones of Chattogram. They resorted to intimidation, hostage-taking and other violent crimes. Thankfully, in response to the appeal for protection from the garment traders and other businesses, the armed forces came forward to establish law and order in the garment belts under scrutiny. Reassuringly, the armed forces are learnt to have formed a task force to provide security so the garment factories in the industrial zones of Ashulia and Savar can operate smoothly. As could be gathered, a quick reaction team under the task force has been at work to respond to the urgent calls for help from the industrial belts around Dhaka.

The way the armed forces filled the security vacuum and restored order in public life, not to mention their role in the industrial zones, is indeed commendable. It is against this backdrop that the business leaders, especially in the garment sector, held a meeting with the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 9th infantry division and regional commander of Savar seeking the army's help to address their major concerns including protection of vehicles transporting goods on roads and highways. In this connection, they also voiced their concern about the inordinate delays being made in the loading and unloading of cargoes at Chittgong port. Clearly, such delays in cargo handling, once a chronic problem in the past, reduce the competitiveness of Bangladeshi apparel products in the world market. It is important to note at this point that the garment sector, the country's main foreign currency earner, had already gone through unprecedented ordeals during the violent, often bloody, face-offs between the law-enforcers and students before the total collapse of law and order following August 5. Understandably, it is not only the lost supply orders that businesses of this sector are most concerned about. Instabilities in the country have made foreign buyers apprehensive of the future of Bangladesh's apparel sector, forcing many of them to look for alternative sourcing destinations for merchandise. In this situation, the main task before the operators of this vital sector of the economy would be to restore the foreign buyers' confidence. Prompt delivery from now on can be the first step. Thus, the Chittagong port's role in facilitating the passage of the cargoes smoothly and promptly to the outgoing container vessels cannot be overemphasised.

So, as requested by the garment businesses, the armed forces will be required to look into what is coming in the way of prompt cargo handling at the port and address those as soon as possible. Given their impressive credentials in other areas of concern, the armed forces are sure to demonstrate their competency in facilitating smooth operation of business at this critical juncture of national life.