The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has suggested addition of more ports of call in the Indo-Bangla water transit protocol with a view to offering alternatives to users, officials said.
"Inclusion of more ports of call widens choice, (but) doesn't compel businessmen to use those ports or stop them from using others," a recent review meeting on bilateral pending issues was told.
The meeting was held as part of preparation ahead of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's upcoming India visit.
The suggestion came while reviewing the issue relating to notifying more ports of call for transshipment of goods in India and Bangladesh to facilitate 'third country' export-import (EXIM) trade.
"(The) government may agree to expand the choice, leaving actual use to the business people based on their judgment of profit and convenience," reads a memo of the meeting.
India suggested modifying 'Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT)' and 'Coastal Shipping Agreement' under which Indo-Bangla bilateral trade mainly takes place.
It wants to include V. O. Chidambaranar Port and Kamarajar Port in the list of the ports of call in the PIWTT and coastal shipping deal.
Shipping secretary Abdus Samad told the meeting that work is well under way to include those in the list of ports of call to further easing of the bilateral trade.
Since 2018, Dhaka-based shippers have been seeking to use Kolkata and Haldia ports to carry out third-country export-import by avoiding 'chronic jam' on Dhaka-Chittagong highway and congestion at Chittagong port.
The Kolkata and Haldia port authorities also proposed that Bangladesh use the gateways to bring more cargoes for them.
At the Indo-Bangla shipping secretary-level meeting in New Delhi last October, Dhaka pledged to examine the pros and cons before responding to New Delhi's offer.
Later, the government engaged the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies and the Bangladesh Foreign Trade Institute to conduct a study on Bangladesh's potential benefit for using the two Indian ports.
Referring to the study report, Mr Samad informed the PMO meeting that using Indian ports "will not be beneficial" to Bangladesh's third-country trade.
Amendments to PIWTT and shipping deal will be required to let Bangladeshi shippers use Indian ports, according to shipping ministry officials.
They said the capacity of Chittagong port is on the rise since several jetties and terminals are under construction and also in the pipeline.
If Bangladeshi shippers are allowed to use Indian ports for third country EXIM trade, Chittagong port may not get adequate cargoes when its capacity rises by a large measure.
On the other hand, businesses say vessels from multiple inland container terminals built on the outskirts of Dhaka and Narayanganj carry goods for bilateral trade under the shipping deal.
If permitted, they said, the vessels can also carry Bangladesh's third country goods to and from Kolkata and Haldia ports.
This, what they said, can help save time and cost compared to using Chittagong port.
Sk Mahfuz Hamid, managing director of Gulf Orient Seaways Ltd, earlier said the capacity of Pangaon ICT remains largely unutilised as Dhaka-based shippers still show their unwillingness to use it.
"If permission is given to use Kolkata and Haldia ports for Bangladesh's export-import trade, Pangaon and other nearest private-sector terminals will see an adequate flow of cargoes," he added.
Mr Hamid said mother vessels anchor at Visakhapatnam seaport which is close to Kolkata and Haldia ports.
"Bangladesh's inbound and outbound cargoes will get adequate space at Visakhapatnam port to board on mother vessels," he observed.
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