Comments
Early closure of gates for export cargo at Chennai air cargo terminal has come in for criticism from the trade.
The gates will be closed at 1900 hrs to receive export cargo instead of 2030 hrs. This took effect on July 1.
After studying the improvement, the closure timings will be further advanced in a gradual manner from August 1.
Advancing the time will encourage trade members to utilise the morning hours to bring export cargo.
However, the trade feels that such a move will only lead to delays in handling. The Board of Airlines’ Committee wanted to advance the time to 1500 hrs as accepting export cargo till 2030 hrs did not help.
Until the situation improves, they wanted early closure of gate.
Advancing the timing will ensure that airlines have sufficient time to complete all the formalities for the cargo to leave the airport in the next immediate flight, they say.
At times, flights have left without a full load due to time constraints in completing all the formalities to lift the cargo.
For better coordination
The airlines should plan and coordinate better than shutting down the operations for their convenience, say members of Chennai Custom House Agents Association and the Air Cargo Agents Association of India.
Even though the cargo is cleared by the Customs, there is a 24X7 operation to receive or deliver cargo in ports.
In contrast, air cargo works for five-and-a-half days a week only, said Mr Praveen Menon, Chairman, ACAAI, Southern Region.
It could be more to do with delays in X-Ray screening and cargo palletisation.
This is airlines’ responsibility.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.