The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Chittagong

Steps are being taken for faster off-loading of a huge quantity of imported wheat from the ships awaiting at the outer anchorage of the Chittagong Port for a long time, in a bid to bring down the soaring prices of flour.

The army-led joint forces have taken the initiatives after being informed that over two lakh metric tons of wheat imported by private importers were stockpiled in more than 100 lighterage vessels and some mother vessels using those as 'floating warehouses'.

The quantity of wheat is going to be three lakh metric tons by November 8 next if Chittagong Port bound other wheat carrying mother vessels are arrived at the outer anchorage in the Bay of Bengal as per schedule.

After a meeting between some of the wheat importers and the joint forces over why such a huge quantity of wheat have been kept in the ships for a long time, the trade body leaders and joint forces officials told BSS that the reasons showed by the importers for not unloading the cargos were not convincing, rather it seems to be a deliberate attempt on their part to earn unusual profit by creating artificial crisis. Sources said had the consignments of wheat unloaded and supplied in the market timely the price of flour could not have been reached at present abnormal level.

Senior officials of the joint forces here held three separate meetings at Chittagong Cantonment at temporary office of joint forces at Halishahar in the city yesterday night and yesterday with leading wheat importers, trade body leaders, C & F agents, surveyors, shipping agents, private ghat owners to assume the actual situation and to find out the ways to immediately supply the huge quantity of wheat in the market by expediting unloading the wheats from the ships.