Following the petition filed by Bangladesh Garment Manufactures and Exporters Association (BGMEA), a divisional bench of High Court (HC) has stayed the imposition of surcharge on containers by feeder-vessel authorities at Chitagong port for two months.
The vessel operators have been claiming extra charge at the rate of US $130 per 20 foot container, since June 5, 2006, for a period of 30 days.
Surcharge was introduced by operators in the wake of increased operational cost due to the congestion of containers and feeder vessels at the country's premier Chittagong seaport.
BGMEA insists that the feeder vessels have already squeezed out large amount from traders under such duties.
Estimated amount extracted by five feeder operators is pegged around Tk500 million, ever since the implementation of this surcharge, sources said.
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