BENAPOLE: Businessmen and importers are facing a lot of problems in the country's largest land port Benapole due to absence of any office of the Bangladesh Standard Testing Institution (BSTI) here, reports BSS. Businessmen, after importing their goods from India through the land port, do not get BSTI clearance on their imported goods timely as the reports are made manually in the port, which take about three weeks time.
Recently, Masers Loreal Bangladesh Limited imported 7,974 cartoons of different goods of Garnier brand from India and importer submitted entry bill to the custom house for testing some goods of the port but the absence of BSTI office the goods have not yet been cleared from the port.
For testing goods, the Benapole port authority is to depend on Khulna BSTI office which takes a longer period. More than 80 per cent of the trade between India and Bangladesh are being taken place through this port, which is also considered as a major corridor for travelers to visit India by buses. Exporters also face hurdles in collecting clearance certificates at the land port for the absence of local offices of Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI).
Businessmen are losing their interests to do business using the Benapole land port because of many problems, including delay in clearing goods by customs authorities.
The Ministry of Commerce had decided to establish a local office of BSTI in Benapole land port in 2011 but the decision is yet to be materialized.
Land Port Subcommittee chairman of India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce Matiar Rahman said "We have to go or invite BSTI officer from Khulna office for testing goods as BSTI has no station here". President of Benapole C & F Agents Association Mofizur Rahman said if BSTI officers can come to the port three days (Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday) in a week, the importers can get their goods cleared from the custom house timely. The concerned authority and importers demanded to establish a BSTI local office in the largest land port as early as possible.