Locomotive shortage disrupts Ctg-Dhaka rail freight

Container transport between Chattogram port and the Kamalapur Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Dhaka has been severely disrupted over the past few months, mainly due to an acute shortage of locomotives at Bangladesh Railway, causing mounting difficulties for businesses.

Port officials said the problem has persisted for nearly a year but began to worsen in October, reaching a critical level in December.

Data from the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) and Bangladesh Railway show that the railway operated an average of more than 112 container trains per month on the route from January to September, with the number peaking at around 140 trains in March and April.

In contrast, only 84 trains were operated in October, 95 in November and just 74 in December. This means that in December, only 37 trains ran from the Chittagong Goods Port Yard (CGPY) to Dhaka ICD, with an equal number operating in the reverse direction.

CPA Director (Operations) Md Omar Faruk said the port requires at least four pairs of container trains per day to transport around 200 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of import containers and ensure smooth clearance of ICD-bound cargo.

Officials at Kamalapur ICD said no container-carrying trains operated for nine days in December as the railway failed to provide locomotives

By that estimation, more than 200 trains are needed each month to keep operations running normally.

Officials at Kamalapur ICD said no container-carrying trains operated for nine days in December as the railway failed to provide locomotives. During the month, only one pair of trains operated on nine days, two pairs on 11 days and three pairs on just two days.

The disruption created a massive backlog at Chattogram port's ICD, which is designated for storing Dhaka-bound import containers. The yard has a capacity of 887 TEUs, but as of yesterday, the number of stored containers had risen to 1,658 TEUs, nearly double its capacity.

This has put severe strain on port operations and raised concerns among importers.

A CPA official said the port has been forced to store ICD-bound containers in areas reserved for export containers arriving from Dhaka ICD, as well as in other yards located farther away.

Sorting and retrieving containers from these distant locations takes additional time during train loading and significantly increases operational costs, the official added. Business operators say they are bearing the brunt of the disruption.

Khairul Alam Suzan, former vice-president of the Bangladesh Freight Forwarders Association (BAFFA), said ICD-bound containers unloaded from vessels four weeks ago were still waiting to be loaded onto trains due to the backlog.

Md Faruk Alam, general secretary of the Dhaka Customs Clearing and Forwarding Agents Association, said at least 1,300 TEUs of ICD-bound import containers have been stuck at the port for around four weeks.

As a result, importers are incurring substantial demurrage charges for containers overstaying at port yards, he said.

Md Sabuktageen, general manager (Eastern Region) of Bangladesh Railway, said freight train operations had resumed in full swing from last week, with three to four pairs of container trains being operated daily over the past few days.

He said locomotives were diverted to operate additional passenger trains in December due to heavy travel pressure, making it difficult to allocate engines for freight services.

The backlog is expected to be cleared within the next 10 days if operations continue at the current pace, he added.

The Eastern Zone currently has 131 locomotives, although more than 20 are undergoing repairs, according to the railway official.