Terminals are now seeking to get permission from the Customs department to shift around 4,500 Full Released (FR) containers outside the ports in order to avoid containers' backlog, which is being piled up after weeklong Eid holidays; it is learnt.
According to sources, around 4,500 FR containers were presently lying at all three terminals - Karachi International Containers Terminal (KICT), Pakistan International Containers Terminal (PICT) & Qasim International Containers Terminal (QICT).
However, traders despite paying legitimate duty and taxes and getting these containers cleared from the customs department are unable to take custody due to unavailability of transport during Eid holidays.
Moreover, sources said these FR containers were creating problems for terminals to house fresh containers, hence terminals have requested the customs department to grant special permission for the shifting of FR containers at warehouses located outside the port area.
Sources however said the customs department was reluctant to allow the shifting of these containers outside the port area as they were of the view that it would raise several technical issues for the department.
On the other hand, if these containers were not lifted from the port area on immediate basis, all three terminals would soon be unable to entertain fresh cargos, which may cause immense difficulties for the trade, sources maintained.
When contacted, Arshad Jamal, senior vice chairman All Pakistan Customs Agents Association (APCAA) said that the issue had firstly been raised by the association before Eid holidays and now the port congestion was getting worst on every passing day.
He urged the customs authority to look into the plea of the terminals and allow them to shift FR containers at designated warehouses outside the port area to facilitate the trade at maximum level.
He further said that trade volume had increased twofold during last couple of years as terminals, which used to handle around 0.15 million containers monthly, were now dealing around 0.3 million containers during a month.
Presently, around 0.15 million containers are handled at KICT; PICT despite having capacity of dealing 75,000 containers is now handling 100,000 containers.
Similarly, around 150 thousand containers are presently parked in QICT. But all three terminals appear feckless to handle this increasing volume of trade, he maintained.
Arshad said the customs department, which received consignments' information 72 hours before the arrival of the vessel through manifest, should mark containers of yellow channel for examination in light of said information and the importers' profiles, which what he said would not only help the importers to get informed about examination reports but the consignments would also be cleared rapidly.
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