Prime mover operators for exclusive terminal at Ctg Port

CHITTAGONG, May 22: Owners of prime movers and operators have demanded construction of an exclusive terminal for the heavy-load transports and containers at Chittagong port.

Unity Council of the Owners and Operators of Prime Movers has also demanded amendments to the BRTA (Bangladesh Road Transport Authority) regulations for bringing all prime movers under same registration, relief from harassment by the traffic police, withdrawal of illogical taxes imposed by BRTA, Chittagong and Chittagong City Corporation, issuance of 'heavy' category licence for trailer operators, and end to filing cases under section 151 against the 20-feet container carriers treating them as open trucks.

The demands were made at a press conference in the city on Tuesday last, a press release of the Prime Mover Trailer Malik Shramik Parishad said. Director of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry and leader of the Parishad AKM Akhtar Hossain placed the demands at the press conference.

He said that BRTA increased vehicles' documentation fee four times higher than that of last year while the city corporation issued a gazette notification on February 15 last fixing its tax on prime mover at Tk 10,000 from Tk 500.

"There is no separate registration rule in the world for the prime mover trailer as it is inoperative without chassis or trailer", he said. They had raised the issue with the Communications Minister two and a half years back. The minister then instructed the BRTA authority to amend the rule for bringing trailers and prime movers under same registration. But it was yet to be amended.

They had been making the demands for last 10 years and wrote several letters to the Shipping Minister and the Chairman of Chittagong Port Authority. They received commitments only, he said.

At least 50 prime movers had been damaged badly during the January-March (2015) hartal and blockade programmes while 12 operators and 15 helpers of them received burn injuries. None of them received any compensation from the government. Such an adverse situation left no hopes for the prime mover owners and operators to sustain business, he concluded.

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