Kamalapur ICD to be shifted to Gazipur

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Doulot Akter Mala
The government has taken a move to relocate the Kamalapur Inland Container Depot (ICD) to Gazipur in an effort to ease pressure on the capital and reduce cost of business.
Bangladesh Landport Authority (BLA) recently formed a seven-member committee to conduct a study on relocating the ICD to Dhirasram in Gazipur and handing it over to BLA.
At present, National Board of Revenue (NBR) is the designated authority to supervise the Kamalapur ICD.
The move came following recommendations of the parliamentary standing committee on Ministry of Shipping.
"The move will reduce cost of business, as destinations of around 90 per cent containers handled at the Kamalapur ICD are Tongi and Gazipur," said a senior government official.
These containers arrive at Kamalapur via Gazipur, and again go to the industrial zones in Tongi and Gazipur. The carrying cost of containers will reduce significantly, if the government could materialise the move, he said.
"It is imperative to decentralise the container depot, as the city is over burdened with huge traffic," he said.
The government should relocate the ICD to a large yard due to increased number of containers in the ICD, he said, adding the number of containers has been increasing by 25 per cent annually.
The seven-member committee will conduct a study at Kamalpur ICD to collect statistics of its activities. It will discuss the matter with the ICD officials, and also prepare a comparative report on activities of the ICD and BLA. The committee will visit the location in Gazipur to draw a plan on relocating the ICD, he added.
It will give a detailed report to the BLA chairman by this month with recommendations for taking further action.
The seven-member committee includes representatives from BLA, shipping ministry, NBR, Chittagong Port Authority and Bangladesh Railway.