Karachi- Textile exporters want their consignments timing for entering the seaports should be reduced to 24 hours for loading instead of 72 hours, as they show inability to transport their goods that early to harbour as electricity load shedding and poor law and order situation continue to hamper timely production.

Proposing steps to avoid delay in cargo inspection at seaports by Anti-Narcotics Force(ANF) which are causing the exporters to miss their shipment as ships sail without waiting to complete the process of examination, textile sector representatives say the terminal operators should clear the consignments within six hours to make it ready for ships loading.

A meeting of textile exporters and officials of Anti-Narcotics Force (AN F),which held this week at the force regional directorate in I$arachi, was attended by representatives of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, all exporters' associations, Pakistan Customs, Custom intelligence, FBR, Karachi Customs Agent Association, shipping lines/shipping agents, all port authorities, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industries. Deputy Coordinator Junaid Makda represented Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Association.

The proposals included that a list of all bona fide members/exporters who submit NTN certificates and proof of filing of tax returns to the associations should be provided to the ANF for record purpose.

Similarly,associations should inform their members that the owners of firm should sign the E-From to control misuse of the forms. The local export cargo should be examined passing through the scanners installed at Oasim International Container Terminal (OICT) and Karachi International Container Terminal (KICT)to save the examination time. These scanners are normally used for inspecting the Afghanistan bound cargo.

The ANF should email to exporters on their NTN based IDs wherein name and cell number of clearing agent and names and cell numbers of two representatives have to be mention. The exporters should be allowed to land their containers/export cargo in 24 hours instead of 72 hours because the exporters work in pressure due to the electricity load shedding and poor law and order situation.

Proposals maintain that the exporters could not wait for 72 hours to undergo their cargos examination. In rare cases of 2 percent to 3 percent cargo which rea.ch the seaports in less than 24 hours, should also be considered"favourably".

The ANF raised issues regarding the collectors (PACCs), which included the exporters use blocked/non-operational or suspended NTNs. Cases also emerged that NTN are used without the consent/knowledge of real/actual holders. ANF informed the meeting that the investigation/inspection of narcotics and money laundering was their responsibility. The ANF pointed out that the system showed several times container owner's/ firm NTN "blocked".

In cases the system showed NTN as "blocked" then it means that the exporter is at "high risk", indicating that he is inactive taxpayer. In a number of cases the ANF found the NTN was used by a fake person without the knowledge of the owner. It was revealed that the inactive firms continue to remain active with selling E-forms, but there is no system to identify the fake companies. The AN F proposed that the clearing agents should remain available at terminals around the clock with complete documents on behalf of the concerned clearing agencies for the examination of shipment.

This article was originally published in the "New Cloth Market", June, 2012.