Readymade garment exporters have demanded lowering of the shipment costs to export their shipment through the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal (ICT).

The country's industry bodies such as members of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), have held meetings with the Pangaon ICT authorities to express their concerns such as high cost of container vessels, irregular schedule and lack of container vessels, absence of freight forwarders, lack of stevedoring and other logistic supports in and around the terminal.

According to the industry insiders, most of the exporters and foreign buyers import and export garment products and related raw materials to and from Bangladesh through their appointed freight forwarders, but since most of them are stationed at Chittagong and not enlisted with Pangaon ICT, which creates a lot of hassles in handling the consignments at the newly constructed ICT.

Sources say that after all the consignments have been cleared by customs authorities at Chittagong port after checking all necessary documents, including LCs (Letter of Credits) and BL (Bill of Lading) that bear the name of Chittagong as the port of call, the containers need further permission for Pangaon ICT, which also involves some extra expenses. The loading and unloading of consignments from Chittagong port for Pangaon ICT also require extra charges and labour costs.

The country's first inland container terminal at Pangaon on the riverbank of Buriganga was inaugurated in November 2013 with a view to easing the pressure of freight traffic on the busy Dhaka-Chittagong highway and rail routes. Built at a cost of Tk 1.54 billion at Keraniganj, the terminal has remained non-functional.

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