Nepal-bound cargo starts moving from Kolkata port

KATHMANDU/BIRGUNJ, FEB 28 -
 
Nepal-bound containers stuck at Kolkata port in India due to the construction work being carried out on the broad-gauge railway yard on the Raxaul-Muzaffarpur section of the railway have now started being dispatched to their destinations.

According to Nepal’s Consulate General in India, shipment of containers has started since Tuesday. Around 700 Nepal-bound containers had been stuck in the Indian port for a week forcing Nepali importers to pay high detention and demurrage charges for keeping the containers at Kolkata port.

Chandra Kumar Ghimire, Nepal’s Consul General in Kolkata, confirmed that the Indian authorities had permitted the shipment of the containers from Kolkata port to Nepal following the completion of the construction project on Feb 25. He said that the Indian authorities had agreed to send the stranded containers as soon as possible.

“Initially, the Indian authorities were for allowing the shipment of just three consignments a week to Nepal,” said Ghimire. “After we held talks with India’s Railway Ministry, we have been able to convince them to permit shipments of two consignments per day.” He added that based on the current arrangement, all the containers will leave Kolkata port within the next four days.

The Nepali authorities said they had also coordinated with Eastern Central Railway, the Patna-based unit of Indian Railways, to give priority to the Nepali containers.

“We have urged the authorities to clear the railway traffic to pave the way for Nepali containers,” said Ghimire.

Earlier, the containers had to wait for only one to two days whenever India started renovation work on the railway yard. “However, it took about a week this time due to the construction of a broad-gauge line along with the alternative roadways.” Ghimire said that infrastructure construction would allow Nepal-bound containers to be transported faster. “From now on, the time required for transportation from Kolkata port to the Nepali border could be reduced by three days,” said Ghimire.

Source: The Kathmandu Post