Chattogram Port Lease Agreement not being done during this government's term: BIDA chairman

Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) Executive Chairman Ashiq Chowdhury said that the Chattogram Port Lease Agreement with DP World is not being done during this government's term.

He said: "They have asked us for some time. But we have only two working days left. So it is not happening within this time."

He made the remarks at a press conference on Sunday afternoon.

Ashiq Chowdhury said, ‘The project started in 2019. The final understanding phase started in the last one month. Which is still ongoing. People from different levels of the government are continuing talks with them. Which will continue. It will take some more time to complete it.’

Meanwhile, the ‘Chittagong Port Protection Movement Council’ has started an indefinite strike demanding that the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) not be leased. This has completely stopped the container delivery activities at Chittagong Port. Although the unloading work was going on at the jetty for a while in the morning on a limited scale, that too is now closed. The unloading activities at the outer anchorage are also being disrupted.

In this strike, it has been announced that operational work at the jetty, yard, terminal, administrative building as well as the outer anchorage (outer lightering) will be stopped. In the previous strike, the activities at the outer anchorage of the port were active.

Meanwhile, the port authority had ordered about 200 general employees and workers to attend an emergency meeting at the conference room of the port building at 9:30 am on Sunday. However, the protesting workers and employees rejected it, so the attendance there was also low.

The coordinator of the Chittagong Port Protection Council, Md. Ibrahim Khokon, announced the program at a press conference at the Chittagong Press Club on Saturday. The remaining three demands of the Port Protection Council are - the withdrawal of the current chairman of the port, SM Moniruzzaman, from the post of chairman; the cancellation of various punitive measures including transfers, charge sheets, temporary suspensions, and demotions against the employees who were taken during the past protest and the reinstatement of every employee in their respective positions at the Chittagong port; and no legal action, including cases, can be taken against the protesting labor leaders.