200 high-risk import containers remain untraceable at Ctg Port

CHATTOGRAM, July 06: More than 200 imported containers flagged for suspected customs offences remain untraceable at Chittagong Port, raising concerns over the potential risks posed by hazardous chemical consignments.
According to official sources, the containers have been locked in the ASYCUDA World risk management system, preventing their release until customs officials complete physical inspections. However, the containers have yet to be physically located at the port.
Over the past nine months, the Chittagong Customs House (CCH) has repeatedly requested the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) to identify the locations of the missing containers. The latest reminder was sent in April by CCH's Audit, Intelligence and Risk Management (AIR) department, following three earlier letters.
Despite the repeated requests, the CPA has yet to provide the whereabouts of the containers, sources said.
According to the sources, the untraceable containers include 83 from 2021, 61 from 2022, 40 from 2023 and 66 from 2024.
Under customs regulations, consignments selected for risk assessment cannot be released until investigators physically examine them. As the containers have not been located, customs officials have been unable to verify their contents or complete the required inspections.
Officials at the Chittagong Custom House acknowledged that they had written to the port authority several times seeking the containers' locations. They said physical examinations cannot proceed until the containers are found.
The issue has renewed concerns over hazardous chemical cargo at the country's prime seaport, particularly in the aftermath of the devastating explosion at the BM Container Depot in Sitakunda on June 4, 2022, which killed around 50 people.
Following the incident, authorities identified large quantities of hazardous chemicals that had remained abandoned at the port for more than a decade. These included both solid and liquid chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide, sodium dithionite, sulfur oxalate, hydrochloric acid, nitro-based solutions, caustic soda and concentrated beverage chemicals.
Officials said some hazardous consignments had remained unclaimed, disputed or abandoned for 10 to 15 years in port sheds. Over the past two years, the CPA and CCH have jointly destroyed or auctioned off a number of such dangerous and long-abandoned chemical stocks.

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