Region’s exporters short of containers

Vijay C Roy

Chandigarh, May 16

Exporters in the northern region, especially Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, are a worried lot. The Red Sea crisis and the disruption to the movement of trains in Punjab due to the farm agitation have adversely impacted the container movement. As a result, exporters are facing a shortage of containers and a consequent delay in delivery of consignments.

10% drop in freight movement

Advertisement

• Containers used for imports are usually deployed for exports also due to transportation cost involved in bringing empty containers
• On an average, 250-300 containers leave Punjab daily. Due to the ongoing challenges, the container movement has dipped by 10%

On an average, 250-300 c ontainers leave Punjab daily. However, there is a drop of around 10 per cent in the container movement due to the ongoing challenges. Ludhiana, a major hub of exports, has around six fully functional inland container depots with a capacity to handle over 25,000 TEUs (20-ft equivalent unit) a month. Exporters in the north are dependent on Ludhiana besides Delhi.

Customs clearing agents say there is a shortage of containers in Ludhiana as imports have dropped due to the Red Sea crisis and the disruption to rail traffic. “This will result in delay of shipments, which will be detrimental to not only the exporting community but also workers,” says SC Ralhan, president, Ludhiana Hand Tools Association.

Federation of Indian Export Organisation president Ashwani Kumar says the Red Sea crisis needs to be addressed by ensuring availability of marine insurance and rationale increase in freight charges. The sector also needs easy and low-cost credit and conclusion of FTAs with the UK, Peru Oman and others soon.