Ctg shipbreaking industry under threat

The shipbreaking industry is under threat. Concerns have been expressed about the billions of taka invested in this industry in the crisis.

Although green yards have been built at a huge cost, there have been attacks on shipyards one after another, obstructions to goods-carrying vehicles, road closures, looting, beatings of officials and extortion demands have raised concerns among businessmen.

Many yards have already been closed due to various irregularities and mismanagement. Questions have arisen as to whether those that are struggling to survive can be kept open at all due to the mischief of organized groups.

The owners of shipbreaking yards are not being protected from the police station or even by staging sit-ins at various doors. Various incidents have created anxiety and concern in the shipbreaking sector.

The Bangladesh Shipbreakers and Recyclers Association (BSBRA) has expressed concern about the situation.
According to sources, the shipbreaking industry started suddenly and unplanned in the southern part of Sitakunda in the 1960s. During the devastating cyclone of 1960, a large ship named MV Sea Al Fine ran aground on the coast of Faujdarhat in Sitakundaupazila.

Despite many efforts, it was not possible to float the ship into the sea. Later, the owner sold the ship at auction. Some local businessmen bought the ship and sold some of its belongings. Later, the ship was dismantled and sold. After independence, a few ships were brought in and dismantled and sold. Although the import of small ships started from 1972, the business boomed in 1979.

In the 1980s, shipbreaking yards started to be built in the coastal area of Faujdarhat in Sitakunda. Later, the shipbreaking industry started to develop in various stages. It spread to the coastal area of about 25 kilometers from Faujdarhat to Kumira. More than 150 shipbreaking yards were built.

Thousands of people got involved in this industry by buying old ships from the international market and selling them as scrap. At one time, about two lakh workers worked in this industry. About three lakh more people were indirectly involved.

Apart from providing a revenue of several thousand crores of taka annually, this industry started playing a major role in the country’s economy. Various banks invested thousands of crores of taka in this industry.

Targeting only the shipbreaking industry, all the scheduled banks of the country started operating by setting up separate branches in the southern part of Sitakunda. The shipbreaking industry is known as a floating iron mine.

Although the main business is to cut ships into pieces and sell them as iron, a huge market for furniture, crockery, electrical goods, various types of electrical wires and other items has also sprung up. It is said that a ship is a small country. Everything that is needed by the citizens of a country is on these ships.

Apart from iron, each ship carries various types of products including precious copper, brass, and stainless steel, various types of furniture, radar, telecommunication systems, electronic equipment, computers, crockery, medical equipment, and fire extinguishing systems, televisions, needles and threads.

Everything that is available on these ships is in demand both at home and abroad. Thanks to shipbreaking, all such important products are easily available, which have to be imported from abroad at high prices.

The area from Fauzdarhat to Kumira used to be bustling with traders of the above-mentioned products. The concerned traders say that many wealthy businessmen of the country are involved in the shipbreaking industry.

Various banks come forward and invest thousands of crores of taka. Rods are made in re-rolling mills with the iron obtained from this industry. Rods are also made from melting crap.

A large part of the country’s rod demand was being supplied by the shipbreaking sector, but times have started to change. Many shipbreaking businessmen have migrated abroad due to various crises. Some have left the country due to debt default.

Many have closed their businesses due to the fragile state of business and trade. Although at least a couple of hundred yards have been built, the number of shipbreaking yards that are currently operational is only a handful. Due to the obligation to build green shipyards, each yard has to make an additional investment of one to two billion taka.

Unable to handle the burden of this additional investment, many shipbreaking yards have not been able to bring any ships in the last two to three years. Once, up to 25 ships used to arrive at the yards in Sitakunda every month. Now there is a shortage of ships.

Amidst this poor state of the shipbreaking sector, extortion has emerged as a new scourge. It has been alleged that extortionist gangs have attacked at least seven shipyards in Sitakunda recently.

The affected yards include BOB Ship Recyclers, Baraka Shipbreaking, Sagarika Shipbreaking, Janata Shipbreaking, Forster, Meherun Shipbreaking and TR Shipbreaking Yard.

According to the complaint, a gang tried to block the path of the owners and officials and employees of BOB Ship Recyclers located in Baraulia area and take them hostage. During this, the vehicles carrying them were attacked, the officials were beaten up and extortion was demanded.

There have been allegations that they blocked the roads with tin fences on the way to Sagarika and Baraka Shipyards and demanded extortion. Another gang has also been accused of blocking the roads with tin fences on the way to Janata, Forster and Meherun Shipbreaking Yards and demanding extortion, the concerned people alleged.

More than a hundred miscreants entered the TR Shipbreaking Yard with sharp weapons, looted goods, threatened to kill officials, and tried to take over the yard. A shipbreaking businessman said, “We have converted our yard into a green yard by spending more than one billion taka.

We are trying to bring a small ship to break it up due to the reduced supply of money. But because of a notorious terrorist, vehicles are not able to enter our yard. He has surrounded the road to our yard with tin.

He alleged that the terrorist was standing on the road with a baton and was constantly threatening us. In the wake of such incidents in several shipyards, an emergency meeting of BSBRA was held on June 23 in Banur Bazar area of Sitakunda.

It was presided over by the organization’s newly appointed administrator and deputy secretary Abu Safayet Muhammad Shahedul Islam. Concern was expressed in the meeting over the deteriorating law and order situation in the shipbreaking industry.

At the same time, it was decided that a delegation of the organization led by the administrator would meet senior law enforcement officials and demand strict action against the accused.

The meeting also decided to seek the intervention of the Home Ministry to ensure a safe business environment in the industrial area, if necessary. BOB Ship Recyclers owner Md. Nurun Nabi Manik told that various extortionist groups have now become active in the shipbreaking industry area.

All the traders expressed concern about the issue at the association meeting.

Some traders met the DIG and Superintendent of Police of Chattogram Range and expressed their concern and filed a written complaint regarding the issue.

An official of the Bangladesh Ship Breakers and Recyclers Association said that the issue is regrettable. There is an attempt to destroy the entire sector. These are identified terrorists, but their power cannot be stopped