The Hindu Business Line : Rlys’ congestion surcharge on iron ore traffic creates problems

Kolkata, Feb. 20 The Railway Board is concerned that the imposition of congestion surcharge on iron ore traffic has thrown up various problems, according to informed sources. The concern is more because a private sector steel plant is believed to have gone to court over it.

The Railways slapped 60 per cent congestion surcharge on iron ore traffic booked for ports or stations identified as port-serving, the idea being to earn as much revenue as possible from the booming iron ore exports.

For example, under Khurda Division of East Coast Railway, there are about half a dozen port-serving stations in addition to Paradip port. Under South Eastern Railway there were no port-serving stations till a few days ago. The iron ore booked to Haldia port only attracted congestion surcharge. However only recently, did South Eastern Railway declare three stations under it — Tamluk, Panskura and Dhalbhumgarh — as port-serving stations.

Not all exports

The problem has arisen because not all the traffic booked to port-serving stations are meant for exports. There are domestic steel producing units, which book iron ore traffic to port-serving stations because of the physical proximity of their plants to these stations. But the Railways would not differentiate between iron ore consignments for exports and domestic consumption. In other words, even the domestic consumers of iron ore booked to port-serving stations are being required to pay the 60 per cent congestion surcharge. This is unacceptable to them.

Precisely for the same reason, several domestic steel producers located on the west coast but receiving iron ore by the coastal route through Visakhapatnam port too are being required to pay 60 per cent congestion surcharge.

Interestingly, some of the iron ore exporters have avoided paying the congestion surcharge by unloading their consignments not in port-serving stations/ports but in some other stations nearby and transporting the consignments by road to the port for exports.

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