The decision followed a request from the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) to waive off demurrage charges levied on clearance of imported goods of the sector stuck at Chittagong Port.

State minister for shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury announced this after BGMEA representatives met him.

Curfew and a suspension of internet services had led to digital customs facilities become non-functional.

Nearly 37,000 containers are now pending at ports, BGMEA president SM Mannan Kochi was quoted as saying by domestic media outlets.

“From July 17, we failed to proceed with the export and import. The garment sector has faced a loss of around Tk7,000 crore due to this anti-quota student movement last week,” he added.

The sector lost around $160 million per day due to protests and accompanying violence.

The situation also eroded foreign retailers’ confidence in Bangladesh as many garment suppliers have received 30-40 per cent fewer work orders than usual.

The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) had also urged the government to waive the demurrage charges for delays in taking delivery and shipping goods from ports in the last few days.

They had also demanded that the authorities should refrain from imposing any new charges in 15 days after normalcy returns to shipment and import clearance activities at the ports.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)