 |
Kathmandu Saturday July 29, 2000 Sharawan 13, 2057.
|
Calcutta Port strike ends
By a Post Reporter
KATHMANDU, July 28 - A fifteen-day long strike in Calcutta Port that
partially affected the flow of Nepal-bound goods imported from third country ended
Thursday.
The strike called by Indo-Nepal Truck and Trailers Association, an
organization of transporters involved in the transportation of goods to Nepal ended in a
compromise between the Association and Nepal Cargo Clearing Agent Association.
The two sides agreed to stick to the transportation fare set by them some
months ago.
Similarly, they also agreed that security of the imported goods during
transit would be responsibility of the transporters.
Transporters in Calcutta had called the strike to protest unhealthy bargain
by the cargo clearing agents to pull down the transportation fare below the agreed level.
After similar strike some six months ago, the two sides had agreed to hike
the fare by 25 percent. However, exploiting the low flow of imports from third country due
to seasonal factor, the cargo clearing agents successfully bargained with some of the
transporters to accept low fare. The per metric tone fare for transportation of goods from
Calcutta Port to the nearest point in Nepal reportedly came down to al low as 700 Indian
Rupees (IRs) per metric tone against the agreed fare of IRs 900-1200 per metric tone.
Akhil Kumar Chappagain, Vice Chairman of Nepal Foreign Trade Association said
it is injustice to enforce such a hike fare to the Nepali businessmen through strike. He
argued that there is no parity between the fare charged to the Indian businessmen and
Nepali businessmen. The per metric tone fare charged to the Nepali businessmen for similar
distance is significantly higher than the fare charged to the Indian businessmen, said he.
Hassle in Calcutta Port is nothing new to Nepali businessmen engaged in
foreign trade. In the last one-year alone Nepal-bound goods were stranded at the Port more
than three times.
Other Stories
|
