Ctg Port Protection Committee demands cancellation of NCT, CCT lease processes

The Chattogram Port Protection Committee has demanded cancellation of the proposed 15-year concession process for operating and maintaining the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) and its Overflow Container Yard (OCY), and an end to the initiative to lease out the Chattogram Container Terminal (CCT).

The committee will hold a daylong sit-in at Chattogram port's main gate on 5 October to press home the demands, its leaders said at a press conference in Chattogram today (3 October).

Fazlul Kabir Mintu, member secretary of the committee, said the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, at its Thursday meeting, gave in-principle approval to a draft 15-year concession agreement with an international operator for NCT and OCY.

He questioned why the strategically important infrastructure proposal was placed under the meeting's miscellaneous agenda.

"Before taking such a long-term decision, a comprehensive and transparent comparative assessment is needed," Mintu said, citing potential revenue from state-run NCT operations, capacity expansion, modern technology and automation, efficiency gains and the government's potential financial benefits from a concession.

Tapan Dutta, president of the Chattogram district committee of the Trade Union Centre (TUC), said the port was a national asset directly linked to foreign trade, imports and exports, revenue, industry, businesses and employment.

"Long-term decisions on managing strategic national infrastructure cannot be based solely on immediate commercial benefits," he said, adding that state interests, national security, revenue, employment and workers' rights must also be considered.

Tapan said the committee was not opposed to foreign investment or modern technology, but long-term management of strategic infrastructure should not risk the country's policy autonomy or national interests. He also called for a review of the 22-year agreement signed with Saudi Arabia-based Red Sea Gateway Terminal in December 2023 to operate the Patenga Container Terminal before any new long-term agreement.

Kazi Sheikh Nurullah Bahar, general secretary of the Chattogram divisional committee of the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal, said the government should explain the need for long-term concessions for NCT and CCT amid challenges involving economic reconstruction, employment, industrial development, investment and productivity.

He called for a public assessment of the potential economic, revenue, employment and strategic benefits and risks, as well as meaningful discussions with workers' organisations, port users and civil society.

The committee has sought a meeting with the prime minister and proposed a national dialogue, Bahar said, stressing that public opinion and stakeholders' views should be considered before any decision.

Taslim Hossain Selim, general secretary of the Jatiyatabadi Dock Sramik Dal, said the committee had long protested the proposed leasing of NCT and CCT through peaceful programmes, including press conferences, hunger strikes, black and red flag processions, torch processions, demonstrations and discussions.

"But we have yet to receive any effective response from the government," he said.

Selim announced the 5 October sit-in, saying broader movement programmes would be announced if the government did not clearly cancel the NCT and CCT leasing initiatives by then.

The committee also called on organisations opposing the leasing to unite to protect Chattogram port and national assets.

Selim said the movement was not against the government but aimed to highlight public concerns, protect state assets and national interests, and ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making.

At the press conference, the committee also demanded cancellation of the NCT-OCY concession process, withdrawal of the Shipping Ministry's letter directing the Chattogram Port Authority to initiate CCT leasing, and withdrawal of what it described as harassment-oriented and false cases against port workers' leaders during the interim government's tenure.

It also demanded that workers and labour leaders involved in the movement not face punitive transfers or other administrative harassment.

The committee said decisions on Chattogram port's operation and management would affect the country's economy, trade, revenue, employment and national interests, and urged the government to consider public opinion, workers' interests and long-term economic and strategic interests before deciding on NCT and CCT.