Chittagong customs revenue rises 18.5pc in first half of 2016-17
Publication Date: 26 January, 2017
Media: The Independent
Original URL : Chittagong customs revenue rises 18.5pc in first half of 2016-17
E-paper URL: Chittagong customs revenue rises 18.5pc in first half of 2016-17
In the first six months of the fiscal year 2016-2017 (July-December), the percentage of revenue realisation has increased 18.5 per cent at Chittagong customs. This is the highest revenue realisation in Chittagong customs in six years.
In the current fiscal year, the import of different products has increased reasonably, said customs sources. However, the amount was still Tk. 1,030 crore less than the target it had set for the July-December half of the fiscal year.
Chittagong customs commissioner AFM Abdullah Khan told The Independent, “We have taken measures to release goods quickly and collect revenue arrears. A lot of revenue was struck in court cases. The import of several goods has increased. So, the realisation of revenue has increased positively.”
“In the last six months, we have realised over Tk. 250 crore from consignments that were held up for some reason or the other. Using technology, our officials detected over 4,000 cases of anomalies that helped us realise this amount,” said Khan.
“If we can continue with this trend, the revenue target of Tk. 39,622.7 crore will be achieved after the end of the current fiscal year,” he added.
Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) director Mahfuzul Haque Shah said, “The realisation of revenue has increased due to the increase in imports.”
If the customs authorities can reduce procrastination in releasing goods and the number of anomalies, revenue collection will increase even further, she added. In the first six months of
the 2016-2017 fiscal year, Chittagong customs has realised Tk. 17,109.99 crore. In the last fiscal year, Chittagong customs had realised Tk. 14,437.50 crore in revenue. This means a hike of Tk. 2,672.49 crore compared with last year. However, the target for the first six months was Tk. 18,140 crore.
The monthly figures were as follows: July—Tk. 2,323.49 crore, August—Tk. 3,000.90 crore, September—Tk. 2,478.77 crore, October—Tk. 2,825.20 crore, November—Tk. 3,256.65 crore, and December—Tk. 3,226.98 crore.
The import of goods also increased in the first six months. Between July and December, 6,616 HS-code-enlisted goods were imported.
In all, 2.91 crore tonnes of goods worth Tk. 100,013 crore (except revenue) were imported. In the same time last fiscal year (2015-2016), 2.38 crore tonnes of goods worth Tk. 91,000 crore were imported. Hence, import of goods has gone up by 53 lakh tonnes.
