C T Online Desk: Rear Admiral M Shahjahan (NPP, BCGMS, ndc, psc) began his career as a cadet of the Bangladesh Navy on July 24, 1984. He was commissioned on January 01, 1987. Since then, he has served in various key positions in the Navy. After successfully completing his tenure as the Chairman of Mongla Port Authority, he joined as the Chairman of the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) in January 2021. The port authority is going to celebrate its 136th founding anniversary today (Tuesday) and marking the day, M Shahjahan talked to The New Nation recently.
The CPA is currently handling 3.2 million TEU containers annually, which were only 6 containers in 1977.
Regarding the achievement, Rear Admiral M Shahjahan said Chittagong Port has a long history, dating back two and a half millennia. However, container handling did not begin until 1977, with six lone containers. We had a lot of constraints back then. It took us 31 years to reach the 1 million TEU container handling milestone. For the first time, Chittagong Port
handled one million TEU containers in 2008. The years that followed were practically enviable. We reached the 2 million TEU milestones in just seven years.
Chittagong Port handled over 2 million TEU containers in 2015. Within four years, the port set a record by handling 3 million TEU containers in 2019 and the handling capacity increased to 3.2 million TEU in 2021.
“As per the well-thought-out direction of the Prime Minister’s and her government’s port-led development plans adopted in that light were major motivators behind Chittagong Port’s extraordinary achievement,” he added.
In general, Chittagong Port has served as a pillar for the country’s export-import trade, placing a premium on the needs of Bangladesh’s growing economy, as made evident by these figures, the CPA chairman said.
Keeping up with this growth, we must constantly improve our capacity, which includes infrastructure and equipment. We currently have a capacity of 53,580 TEU containers. Our capacity has also grown and is now comparable to any modern port on the planet, he said.
“In addition, the equipment inventory has grown. When I first started working at Chittagong Port as a Member (Harbour & Marine) in 2010, the CCT only had four QGCs (Quay Gantry Cranes). We have now 18 and had only seven RTGs at that time, but now we have 47. The port’s inventory now includes an RMGC (Rail Mounted Gantry Crane),” he added.
“Meanwhile, we have finished building the Patenga Container Terminal. Our port capacity has thus increased to four million TEU. Now, there is no congestion of ships or containers at Chittagong Port,” he claimed.
Briefly, the addition of many cranes of various capacities to our fleet has undeniably increased the port’s capacity and resulted in an outstanding change. This was made possible by the Prime Minister’s vision for port development as the policy and funds provided by the government, he said.
Claiming that they have upgraded Chittagong Port to a modern port, he said, “Vessels with a length of 200 metres and 10 metres draft can now be berthed at the port’s jetties Vessels with a length of 200 metres and 10 metres draft can now be berthed at the port’s jetties due to the navigating of the Karnaphuli channel.”
M Shahjahan further said the port was once known as a manual port but now it has moved on from that.
“We have launched the Terminal Operating System (TOS) at the port. Electronic delivery is a revolutionary step. Truck toll collection is now automated through the Vehicle Management System and has evolved into a modern port with some automation, but not all of it,” he said.
“Vessel Traffic Management Information System (VTMIS) is in place to monitor vessels’ movement in the outer anchorage and the channel. The range of the facility has increased keeping in line with the expansion of the outer anchorage (port limit),” he said.
Besides, pilot service automation has been introduced for automatic ship piloting. Several development plans have been implemented to improve the security system of the port. Cutting-edge CCTV control centre and public address systems have been installed to ensure a safe port. Traffic safety and control systems comprise Automatic Gate Control System, Under Vehicle Surveillance System (UVSS), and scanners, he added.
“We are benefiting from automation’s widespread acceptance. It feels good when the UK’s Portsmouth research said that Chittagong Port is ranked first among Asia’s 65 semi-automatic ports. This accomplishment benefits not just the port but also the stakeholders, employees, and users,” he said.
Claiming that Bangladesh could be declared as a transshipment hub for its strategic location, Rear Admiral M Shahjahan said, “The country can act as a pivotal economic hub in the region. Along with its 170 million populations, Bangladesh can also be a gateway to an enormous market of about 3 billion people in the surrounding region.
“Transshipment hub means other countries will use our port. That is why our port should have a developed infrastructure, communication system, connectivity, service availability, skilled workforce, and, most importantly, adequate navigability. It must also be affordable,” he said.
“We have all the facilities. With the Matarbari deep sea terminal becoming operational, neighbouring countries such as Kolkata (Syama Prasad Mukherjee Port), Haldia, Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, and Andaman-Nicobar of India and the ports on the Bay of Bengal belt will be able to use it,” he added.
Besides, Akyab and Yangon in Myanmar, and Phuket in Thailand, and a few other smaller ports will also be able to use it as these ports will be Matarbari-centric because the drought of Matarbari is the highest among the ports of this region, the CPA chairman said.
