Revenue collection from land ports falls by 90 per cent due to political turmoil

Country's revenue collection from land ports has fallen drastically in recent times as Indo-Bangla trades have almost come to a halt due the ongoing hartals and blockades, officials said.
All customs officials at the land ports expressed the fear that they may not be able to fulfil their revenue collection target fixed for the current financial year due to the prevailing anti-business atmosphere.
They said frequent blockades caused a massive blow to the government's revenue collection from the ports as it fell by more than 90 per cent since October, 2013.
"Export- import business through land ports has almost halted for the last three months resulting in drastic decline in our revenue earnings during the period," a customs commissioner told the FE.
He said if the situation continues, then all the land ports would fail to achieve their revenue target fixed for the current FY 2013-14.
According to the statistics of Bangladesh Land Port Authority (BLPA), business activities at the country's 16 land ports were suspended for 47 days in the last 67 days (until January 6 last).
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has fixed the revenue collection target at Tk 23.50 billion  for the country's largest land port, 'Benapole' for FY 2013-14 but the customs authority at the port said the target would not be achieved.
"We are now in a dilemma what will be the scenario at the end of the financial year," Shariful Islam, a customs official said.
According to him, the Benapole port authority on an average collects around Tk 90 million as revenue every day in the form of export and import duty from the businessmen.
"But from last October, our daily income came down to around Tk 6.0 million," he said, adding that the situation is almost same at other land ports.
In FY'14 the government had fixed a target of collecting Tk1.67 billion as revenue from the imports and exports through the Bhomra Land Port in Satkhira.
An official of Bhomra Land Port told the FE over cell phone on Monday that due to volatile political situation and countrywide blockade the port authority is losing around Tk 5.0 million as revenue a day for the last three months.
He said, "If the situation prolongs further, the port authority will fail to collect even 60 per cent of the target for the current fiscal year".
Former president of Federation of Bangladesh Customs Clearing & Forwarding Agent Association (FBCCFAA) Sheikh Md Farid told the FE, "In last three months there business at land ports has drastically fallen".
He said they have been affected by the current political situation and in recent times export and import business at land ports decreased by more than 90 per cent.
A revenue officer of Sonamasjid land port told the FE that revenue collection at Sonamasjid land port had failed to reach the target in the first six months of the fiscal 2013-14.
He said at Sonamasjid land port business has fallen significantly in recent times. For countrywide blockade now a very small number of trucks crosses the port, he added.
Through the 16 land ports, Bangladesh export goods including raw jute, jute goods, frozen food, agro-products, woven garments, knitwear, leather and chemical products while import goods including automobile, textiles and textile articles, products of the chemical or allied industries, machinery and mechanical appliances are handled.  
According to the statistics of Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), the Indo-Bangla trade volume stood at US$ 5.3 billion in fiscal year 2012-2013 when Bangladesh imported Indian goods worth $4.74 billion against the exports of $563.96 million.