Barvida baulks at blueprint

The Bangladesh Reconditioned Vehicles Importers and Dealers Association (Barvida) demanded re-assessing the proposed automobile industry development policy to ensure that consumers get access to quality cars.
The leaders of the lobbyist group said the proposed policy would result in merely "a screw driving industry" in the name of making homemade cars.
If the policy is adopted and finalised to produce cars in the country, then the option of exports should be incorporated into it so that a healthy and competitive business environment can be practiced in the domestic car market.
They made the calls at a press conference at the Economic Reporters Forum (ERF) auditorium in the city.
Barvida president Abdul Haque made a presentation at the programme.

However, the Barvida welcomes the initiative of formulating the Automobile Industry Development Policy 2020.
The association leaders said it is necessary to consider the current state of the industries concerned, experiences of other countries and the existing realities of the country, before allowing of establishment of any kind of industry in the country.
While presenting the paper, Mr Haque said the proposed policy is contradictory to the existing industrial policy of the country.
The proposed policy, drafted by the Ministry of Industries, has allowed import of SKD (semi knocked down) and CKD (Completely Knocked down) forms of cars by stopping import of CBUs (Completely Built Units).
MrHaque said the SKD form has been abolished in the customs policy of the National Board of Revenue (NBR).
The proposed policy said it would be viable to establish the car industry in the country if the annual sale of the cars reaches 0.1 million units in the domestic market.
Only 20,000 units of cars are sold in the domestic market every year, the Barvida said.
Enjoying the tax incentives, a company should not be allowed to manufacture cars focusing on the domestic market, but they will also have to be compatible with exporting their produced cars to other countries.
There should have a condition of 30 per cent value addition locally in case of spare parts assembling, the Barvida leaders said.
Barvida leaders said that even some industrialised and developed countries like Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Chile and the UAE allow imports of Japanese reconditioned cars in their respective countries because of fulfilment of Euro 5 emission control standards followed by the Japanese car makers.
On the other hand, some internationally-branded cars, which are produced in countries like India, Thailand and Indonesia, can follow only Euro 2 or 3 emission control standards and pollute the environment more than the reconditioned cars of Japan.
Secretary-general of the association Mohammed Shahidul Islam delivered the welcome speech at the programme.
Former presidents of Barvida Md. Habib Ullah Dawn and Md. Abdul Hamid Sharif, second Vice President Mohd. Saiful Islam Samrat and Executive Members Mr. Abu Hossain Bhuiya (Ranu) and Md. Yunus Ali also spoke at the news conference.
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