Santanu Bhattacharjee:
When whole of the country wanting to work to boost up the near dead economy the landport at Petrapole remains an exception. Ruling Trinamul leaders like Gopal Seth demonstrating to stop trade citing intrusion of corona through the border via benapole route. But little he could offer as neither the state government no the local ULB( urban local body) could set up any health checking facility at the landport nor in the it’s hinterland.
The central government and BJP went a step further. While the state BJP miserably failed to take on the political challenge by Trianmul by stopping the trade even after centre’s reprieve to continue it. In the entire fiasco the stakeholders , many of whom who are loosing their bread and butter are clueless how to continue with their livelihood. The drama took a deplorable turn on saturday as nearly 10 trucks could offload their cargo in other side.
The most irony part is the trucks had got the green signal to offload their products before the locak down period began and had their paper processed before 24March, 2020 when the locakdown has began. Since then nearly 2000 trucks came to deliver their goods in our neighbouring country but none could deliver nor could even get their required papers processed to offload their items at Benapole and return home. However the concerned offcials at Delhi proving themselves complete jockers shot of letter to landport and customs authority at Petrapole to continue with the exim trade. Petrapole is lossing at least rupees 10 crores business volume perday and corresponding government revenue.
However central government have to pay their staffs there enhanced salary even though they failed miserably to continue the trade.
The BJP factions too played a spoilsport here to start a political movement to implement central government policy.
Kartik Chakrabarty , a member of the clearing agents association is of opinion to start exim business with health check systems in place. ” This place is earning for the entire country. Let there be system for rpid test , pcr test and a small health camp to screen trucks from Bangladesh.” he added.
After a month’s gap, India-Bangladesh trade through the land border of Petrapole in West Bengal’s 24 Parganas North district began on Thursday, an official said.
The trade through the border had come to a halt late last month after the labourers refused to join duty fearing infection due to the Covid-19 pandemic.On Tuesday, the Central government convened a meeting where the local administration officials also took part.The meeting came up with an acceptable solution by announcing that for the time being, no truck from either country would cross the border, and consignments would be unloaded at the zero point. A truck driver said on condition of anymity “The transporters are not picking up our calls.
The West Bengal government has arranged for our food but we are more worried of not being able to help our families in this hour of need,” he said.Two other drivers from the northern state said their families back home are also facing similar problems.The Bangladesh-bound trucks move towards the Petrapole border crossing in North 24 Parganas through Nadia’s Chakdaha. This movement is creating morte pressure at Petrapole.
