Ctg Port Protection Committee calls for halting lease plans for 2 terminals, places 5 demands

The Chattogram Port Protection Committee today (28 June) placed a five-point demand, including an immediate halt to the government's initiative to lease out the port's New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) and Chittagong Container Terminal (CCT) to domestic or foreign operators.

At a press conference at the Chattogram Press Club, leaders of the committee said the terminals should remain under the direct ownership and management of the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA), describing them as strategic national assets.

Reading out a written statement, the committee's convener, Delwar Majumdar, said, "Chattogram Port handles around 90% of the country's import and export trade, making its ownership and operational control a matter of national security, sovereignty and state interest rather than merely a commercial issue."

He alleged that the government is in the final stage of negotiations with Dubai-based port operator DP World to hand over the operation of NCT under a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement. 

He also referred to the CPA's recent decision to form a 12-member support team to assist the government's negotiation committee.

The committee claimed that the NCT and CCT were developed with public funds and have been operated successfully under local management for years.

According to the speakers, the NCT has an annual handling capacity of 1.1 million TEUs but currently handles around 1.3 million TEUs a year.

They also said the terminal handled a record 126,496 TEUs in May this year, which they argued reflects the capability of local operators.

The speakers further alleged that container handling charges had already been increased by 37% before any final agreement was signed, increasing import and export costs, and claimed that leasing the terminals to a foreign operator would allow a substantial share of port earnings to be repatriated abroad, affecting foreign exchange reserves and government revenue.

The committee also expressed concern that foreign control over NCT and CCT could pose national security risks, noting that the port is located near important military and strategic installations.

It also called on the government to make public all agreements related to the Patenga Container Terminal, Pangaon Inland Container Terminal and Laldia Char projects, and urged authorities not to enter into any confidential agreements that could undermine national interests.

The committee's five-point demand includes scrapping all initiatives to lease NCT and CCT to domestic or foreign operators, ensuring that all port terminals remain under the direct management of the CPA, publishing all port-related agreements, ending what it described as secret deals against national interests, and making a clear government commitment to keeping Chattogram Port under national ownership, national control and national security.

The organisation also announced a rally and human chain at the Chattogram Press Club on Tuesday (30 June) to press home its demands.