Shipping, Labour and Employment Adviser Brig Gen (Rtd) Dr M Sakhawat Hossain on Saturday said the restart of Pangaon Inland Container Terminal (ICT) opened is a new horizon in the country’s port management and inland water transport sector.
He made the remarks while inaugurating the resumption of operations at the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal in West Keraniganj, following a Switzerland-based management model.
He said upgrading the terminal to international standards would boost inland container transportation and further strengthen multimodal transport connectivity.
He added that the government’s primary objective was to turn a critically important infrastructure, which had been incurring losses for a long time, into a profitable and efficient facility through skilled and professional management.
Shipping Ministry Secretary Nurunnahar Chowdhury said the 22-year concession agreement would make cargo handling activities at the terminal more dynamic and have a positive impact on the national economy.
Chattogram Port Authority Chairman Rear Admiral M Moniruzzaman attended the event as a special guest, while Medlog Bangladesh Private Limited Managing Director A T M Anisul Millat delivered the welcome address, according to an official release.
The event was told that the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal, built at a cost of about Tk155 crore, had been suffering losses for the past decade, prompting the government to place its operations under private management.
As part of the move, a 22-year concession agreement was signed last November under which Medlog Bangladesh Private Limited, in partnership with the Chattogram Port Authority, was entrusted with the operation, maintenance and modernisation of the terminal.
