Clearing and forwarding (C&F) agents at Chattogram Port observed a four-hour work stoppage on Sunday morning protesting against the increased entry fees imposed by the Chittagong Port Authority.
More than 10,000 C&F workers, who handle documentation for import and export cargo clearance, joined the protest, suspending operations from 9:00am to 1:00pm. They usually enter the port several times a day using light vehicles.
Under the new tariff, the entry fee for light vehicles has been raised from Tk 23 to Tk 115. The new rates came into effect on October 15, affecting all categories of vehicles and individuals entering the port premises.
Mosharraf Hossain, general secretary of the Chattogram Customs Agents Employees Union said that most C&F workers earn low wages and need to enter the port multiple times daily. The higher entry fee has sharply increased their daily expenses. If the decision is not withdrawn, they would announce tougher programmes, he said.
Meanwhile, a C&F worker Mohammad Kalim Ullah said, 鈥業 have been working at the port for 35 years. The gate pass fee was only 50 paisa when I started. It gradually rose to Tk 10, but now it has jumped to Tk 115 at once. This is unreasonable, so we have stopped clearing goods in protest.鈥�
The C&F Agents Association president S M Saiful Alam said that during the four-hour programme, its members refrained from cargo-handling activities. Although the protest temporarily disrupted goods clearance, the backlog was cleared later in the day.
The work stoppage followed Saturday鈥檚 protest meeting organised by the Port Users Forum where forum convener Amir Humayun Mahmud Chowdhury announced week-long symbolic protests against the increased tariffs.
In the protest meeting, he warned of larger demonstrations if the fees were not withdrawn within a week.
