The Hindu Business Line : Bangladeshi barge plying on Hoogly irks Indian operators

THE decision of the Directorate-General of Shipping to allow Bangladeshi barge operators to ply their barges in the Hoogly river for movement of iron ore from anchorage to the Kolkata port has raised the hackles of the Indian barge and inland vessel operators.

Representatives of the Indian barge operators claim that some 30 to 35 barges with Bangladeshi flag were at present plying on the Hoogly river. "This may set an unseemly trend and may pose a serious threat to national interests. Further, this may affect the employment potential of leading Inland vessel operators," according to Mr S.K. Sahi, Managing Director of SKS (Ships) Ltd, a leading coastal barge operator.

Indian operators feel that there was no need to bring in foreign operators, as there were adequate Indian-flagged vessels to handle the inland transportation needs of Kolkata port. Further, according to them, permitting the Bangladeshi barges was against the Cabotage norms, which seek to impose restrictions on foreign flagged vessels operating in Indian waters.

The fact that this development has taken place at a time when the coastal barge operators are facing a strong demand growth has sharpened the blow to the domestic industry. For example, SKS (Ships) Ltd, which operates 35 coastal barges in the Indian coast, has reported a 87 per cent increase in net profit during the third quarter of the current fiscal at Rs 2.67 crore as against Rs 1.43 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal.

A senior official in the DGS said permission was given to seven or eight Bangladeshi-flagged barges. "In fact, we had given the permission only after we received the NOC from both the INSA (Indian National Ship-owners Association) and Indian Coastal Conference," the official said.