B Mirror Report :  Due to a severe lack of smaller vessels, the unloading of cargo from large vessels at Chattogram Sea Port’s outer anchorage has essentially stopped, raising grave concerns about the availability of necessities before Ramadan.

More than 85 ships carrying roughly four million tons of cargo, including food grains, fertilizers, sugar, edible oil, pulses, and industrial raw materials, are reportedly waiting in deep sea, according to port sources. Fears of supply shortages and potential price increases during the holy month have increased as a result of the disruption in lighterage services.

As of January 15, a total of 108 cargo vessels were anchored at the outer anchorage and the Kutubdia channel, holding over 4.5 million tons of cargo, Chattogram Port officials said. Among these, 17 ships are transporting around 1.2 million tons of Ramadan-related food items such as wheat, maize, soybeans, chickpeas, lentils, and edible oil. In addition, five ships are carrying more than 200,000 tons of sugar, seven vessels are loaded with fertilizer, and 25 ships are transporting cement clinker.

The Ship Handling Operators and Terminal Operators Association reported that each mother vessel stranded at the outer anchorage is incurring an average demurrage cost of Tk 16 lakh per day, significantly increasing import costs.

Industry insiders said that under normal conditions, a mother vessel carrying about 50,000 tons of cargo can complete unloading within seven to ten days using lighter ships to transfer goods to river ports and terminals. However, due to the current crisis, unloading now takes 20 to 30 days, severely disrupting supply chains.

Stakeholders argue that the problem is not solely due to a lack of lighter vessels but is largely the result of mismanagement and misuse. Many lighter ships carrying food grains have reportedly been stranded at sea for months, as some importers are using them as floating warehouses, preventing the vessels from returning to regular service.

Business leaders believe the crisis has been artificially created. While certain large industrial groups use their own lighter ships, most importers depend on allocations from the Bangladesh Water Transport Coordination Cell (BWTCC). The mismatch between demand and available vessels has forced unloading operations for more than 50 ships to come to a standstill.

Sarwar Hossain Sagar, President of the Bangladesh Ship Handling and Berth Operators Association (BSHBOA), said normal port operations require 200 to 300 lighter ships daily, but currently only 30 to 40 vessels are available, pushing unloading activities to the brink of paralysis.

The BWTCC has attributed the crisis to dense fog and the engagement of around 140 vessels in fertilizer transportation for the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC). However, traders maintain that while fog caused temporary delays, the core issue lies in poor coordination and management.

Port operators have demanded the withdrawal of the serial-based vessel allocation system and the introduction of an open system to ease congestion.

Meanwhile, Parvez Ahmed, Vice-President of the Inland Vessel Owners Association of Chattogram (IVOAC), said that although around 1,200 lighter ships are registered under the BWTCC, nearly 300 vessels are currently operating at Mongla Port. He added that 687 lighter ships have not returned after unloading cargo, resulting in severe shortages in vessel availability.

Typically, a lighter ship takes three to five days to complete unloading from the outer anchorage to the wharf. At present, however, many vessels have remained idle for one to one and a half months.

Former Director of the Bangladesh Shipping Agents Association, Khairul Alam Sujan, stressed the need for strict monitoring to prevent the misuse of lighter ships as storage facilities. He urged the Ministry of Shipping to convene an urgent meeting of all stakeholders.

Warning of a potential food supply crisis during Ramadan, Sujan suggested allowing importers with idle vessels to use alternative lighter ships on an emergency basis to unload essential food items, which he said could significantly reduce congestion and stabilize the supply chain.