Benapole traders upset as customs stops releasing goods after dusk

Vegetable and fruit traders at the Benapole land port are in trouble as the Customs Authority there has stopped releasing goods imported from India at 6pm for the past three days.

Traders said most of the imported goods are now rotting in the sultry weather.

Customs officials said there were allegations that some traders were trying to evade duties by unloading raw materials in the dark of night.

Neyamul Islam, additional commissioner of Benapole Customs House, said some organisations have about Tk3 crore in revenue arrears and were not paying those as they had promised.

"As a result, customs activities have been suspended after 6pm for security reasons," he said.

Around 70 trucks carrying various fruits and food items are imported from India through the Benapole port every day, from which the government gets revenue of Tk2-3 crore.

But the government was losing revenue recently because of tax evasion by a class of unscrupulous traders, and other traders are now suffering.

Md Royal, a representative of importers, said he requested the customs to change its decision considering the sufferings of the honest traders.

Palash Ahmed, a traffic inspector at the Benapole port, said in the last three days, 45 trucks of perishable food items – fish, tomatoes, raw vegetables, grapes, capsicum, etc – have been imported. Traders could not unload many goods after dusk due to customs restrictions.