The government will provide a seven-day demurrage waiver to the country's readymade garment (RMG) industry to compensate for their economic losses due to the recent unrest.
State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury was speaking about this decision when the leaders of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) met him at his office on Sunday afternoon.
Chowdhury also said: “The Chittagong port was never closed for a single day amid this ongoing situation, but due to internet shutdown, digital customs facilities were off.”
“BGMEA leaders requested me to consider their demands, so we have decided to give them a seven-day demurrage waiver for their container in the ports,” the state minister further stated.
Talking to the media after their meeting, BGMEA President SM Mannan Kochi said: “Right now approximately 37,000 containers are stranded at ports, of which 13,000 are ours. From July 17, we failed to facilitate import and export processes.”
“The country’s RMG industry has suffered a loss of around Tk7,100 crore due to this anti-quota student movement last week,” the BGMEA president added.