Import-export activities resume at Hili port on Saturday, after five days
Hili (Dinajpur) Correspondent
After being closed for five consecutive days, import-export activities between Bangladesh and India through the Hili land port in Dinajpur are finally resuming. Following the withdrawal of the indefinite strike called by Indian traders, the port’s commercial activities are set to return to normal on Saturday (September 5).
Since August 30, traders at India’s Hili land port had halted the export of goods to Bangladesh and the import of goods from Bangladesh, bringing trade activities between the two countries to a complete standstill. As a result, cargo truck movement at the port stopped, and activity slowed among traders, C&F agents, transport workers, and other people connected to import-export operations.
On Thursday (September 3), a meeting was held between business leaders and the district administration of South Dinajpur, India, regarding the reasons for the strike and various trade-related problems. The meeting discussed infrastructural issues at the Hili land port, various obstacles in exporting goods to Bangladesh, and various grievances raised by traders. After the administration assured that the problems would be resolved, Indian traders decided to withdraw the strike.
Mr. Bikash Mondal, General Secretary of India’s Hili Exporters and Customs Clearing Agents Association, said fruitful discussions were held with the administration, following which the strike was withdrawn. Since Friday is a weekly holiday in Bangladesh, import-export activities through the Hili land port will resume on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Mr. Shahinur Islam Mondal, General Secretary of the Hili Customs C&F Agents Association, said they have learned about the meeting between the administration and Indian traders and the withdrawal of the strike. However, no written information regarding the meeting’s decisions has yet reached Bangladeshi traders.
The five-day halt in import-export activities had raised concerns among traders and workers connected to the port. Traders hope that once operations resume, activity at the port will pick back up and trade between the two countries will return to its normal course.
