Delay in clearing of goods by Customs affects business activities

PESHAWAR: The containers and other goods dumped at the parking area have been affecting the routine work at the Peshawar Dry Port.

Divisional Traffic Officer (DTO) Umar Riaz, who is also the Divisional Commercial Officer (DCO), said the delay in clearance of goods by the Customs authorities was hampering operations at the dry port.

He said the working capacity of the dry port was 165 containers daily, but it came down to just 15-20 containers due to the delay in clearance of the goods.The official said 63 containers, 51 heavy machinery vehicles, 350 imported vehicles and spare-parts had occupied over 80 percent of the parking area at the port.

He said the containers and vehicles with heavy machinery had been stranded for the past three months at the dry port.The 350 vehicles were imported to take advantage of an amnesty scheme for the non-Customs paid (NCP) vehicles in 2013, he added.

Umar Riaz maintained that the Customs authorities had recently cleared the vehicles, but the authorities of the Pakistan Railways refused to issue gate passes to the importers and demanded Rs420 million as parking and storage charges.

Deputy Collector Peshawar Dry Port, Athar Naveed said the 63 containers and 51 heavy machinery vehicles were imported by a construction company.He said the containers and heavy machinery vehicles were imported in violation of the import policy, adding, an inquiry was conducted into the matter and the Customs authorities were going to confiscate the vehicles and containers.

He said the containers and vehicles would be shifted to the Customs warehouse in Hayatabad in two weeks’ time.To a question, he said construction work was underway at the Customs warehouse and this was the reason they could not shift the blocked containers to the warehouse.

He said the Customs authorities had cleared the 350 vehicles, but the Railways authorities were demanding parking charges. Chairman of Dry Port and Railways Standing Committees of the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ziaul Haq Sarhadi said the delay in the clearance of the goods at the dry port was affecting the business and operations at the facility.

He added the Customs authorities in Karachi cleared the consignments in two to three hours, but it took the Customs officials at the Peshawar Dry Port three to four days to clear the same number of goods. 

“Why the Customs authorities at the Peshawar Dry Port cannot clear a consignment in hours instead of days,” he wondered. Ziaul Haq Sarhadi said the delay and blocking of containers and trade goods was resulting in the loss of revenue to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). He said the importers usually pay Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 per container on account of tax and other charges. 

He said the delay had resulted in extra charges to the importers and increase in the price of the commodities, adding the importers shift the burden to the customers.

“At the end it is the customers who pay the extra charges,” he added.

He urged the Customs authorities to expedite the process of goods clearance at the dry port in the best interest of the businessmen and consumers.