Pangaon terminal: Still only partly functional

The Pangaon island container terminal is yet to come to life since its formal inauguration around two years back in November 3013. This is unfortunate in consideration of the common perception about the capability of the terminal to divert a sizeable export and import cargo from roadways to waterways, that too at a reasonable cost. It is indeed difficult to fathom the waning enthusiasm of the authorities in doing the needful to facilitate increased use of this container terminal. Mere basic amenities are not enough to operationalise a major service-providing installation as there are many other concerns that also need to be addressed to render it fully functional.

True, there has been some diversion to the water route lately but the merchandise handling is still far from what was expected. Reasons commonly attributed to the lack of interest for business people to use the terminal include higher feeder costs and other tariffs, insufficient logistics in and around the terminal and occasional non-availability of shallow-draught vessels on the route. The cost part, as reports say, is indeed discouraging. Businesses are required to bear additional costs, on top of the high freight charges, to get their containers to the terminal from their production plants. For industrial units located in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur and Ashulia, carrying a 20-feet equivalent unit (TEU) of container (approximately 15 tonnes of cargo) from Pangaon terminal to Chittagong port costs much higher compared to transportation by rail, even by road. Coupled with the higher costs, there are alleged procedural complications cumbersome enough to discourage exporters and importers alike. Enlistment of freight forwarders has also not progressed at the desired level. Besides, the security aspect must not be ruled out along the 152 nautical-mile route that crosses Sandwip channel, Gazaria, Chandpur and Pangaon.

The Pangaon container terminal, built at a cost of Tk 1.50 billion on 33 acres of land on the bank of the Buriganga, 18 kilometres away from the capital, was basically intended to provide an alternative route for carrying export and import merchandise to, and from, Chittagong port to Dhaka. During the prolonged country-wide political turbulence in the recent past, the terminal looked to offer a useful respite for movement of goods as a substitute for the 265-kilomtre traffic-choked Dhaka-Chittagong highway which usually takes eight to ten hours or more. But things have not turned the way they were meant to be.

It need not be stressed that the Pangaon container terminal has immense potential to emerge as a viable means to reduce the already over-burdened rail and roadways in carrying export and import merchandise to, and from, Chittagong. The authorities have reportedly moved the ministry of shipping for revising the feeder costs and tariffs to affordable levels. At the same time, addressing some of the major issues such as availability of shallow-draught vessels, security concerns along the water route and providing other related facilities including removing procedural bottlenecks, should prominently figure in to make the terminal operational up to its capacity.