Inclement weather hampers Ctg port operations

Discharge of goods from mother vessels to lighter vessels at the outer anchorage of Chittagong port, the premier port of the country, has been disrupted due to bad and inclement weather.

There were disruptions in unloading of goods for two days but on Tuesday there was a complete deadlock.

As many as 33 mother vessels were scheduled to discharge goods at outer anchorage on Tuesday but because of bad weather, the release of goods from them had to be cancelled.

Secretary of Chittagong Port Mohammad Omar Farouq said generally, bulk cargo discharge is stopped during heavy rains because there is a fear of spoilage of goods in rainwater. Apart from this, due to rough seas, lighterage ships cannot go to sea to fetch goods.

At the same time, the general cargo berth inside the port also stopped the discharge of bulk goods, he added, but other operations of the port including the discharge of containers were normal.

Sixty percent of the goods imported at Chittagong port are unloaded from the mother vessels at outer anchorage to smaller lighterage vessels. These lighterage ships take goods to different parts of the country including the capital Dhaka by river route.

On Monday and Tuesday, no lighterage vessel could move to outer anchorage of the port in the Bay of Bengal, said Ataul Kabir Ranju, an official of the lighterage ship owners’ association Water Transportation Coordination Cell (WTC).

However, on Sunday, large size lighterage ships went to discharge the goods.

As many as 26 lighterage vessels were supposed to be engaged in discharging cargo on Monday and 33 on Tuesday but these vessels were sitting idle due to inclement weather, he added.

The goods unloading at ports disrupt the supply chain leading to shortages in the market and prices of goods can also plummet.

Bad weather for two more days

Due to the low pressure created in the Bay of Bengal, the weather has been inclement for the past few days. Patenga Meteorological Office said this situation may continue for two more days.

On Tuesday afternoon, the low pressure turned into a land depression. It was located near Madhya Pradesh, India, Zahirul Islam, the forecasting officer of the Meteorological Office, said.

As the sea is rough, all boats have been asked to move carefully in the Bay of Bengal, he said stating that 44 mm of rain had fallen in Chattogram in the last 24 hours till 3 pm on Tuesday. Heavy to moderate rain may continue in different parts of the country for two more days.