No plan to hand over Ctg port to any foreign operator: Shipping minister

Published : Wednesday, 22 April, 2026 at 9:51 PM Count : 9

Shipping Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam today told the parliament that there is no plan to hand over Chattogram Port to any foreign operator.

He explained that operators -- domestic or foreign -- are only appointed to run specific terminals under government-issued or approved Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangements.

He made the comments while responding to a question from BNP MP Shahadat Hossain at the parliament.

The shipping minister said that in line with modernisation and the growing pace of the country’s import-export trade, various port terminals are being operated by both local and foreign operators. For example, the Patenga Container Terminal is run by a foreign operator. In addition, a contract has been signed under the PPP method with APM Terminals BV, a subsidiary of Denmark’s Maersk Group, for the construction and operation of the Laldiya Container Terminal on the right bank of the Karnaphuli river.

Replying to another question from BNP MP ABM Mosharraf Hossain, the shipping minister said that the government is trying to make the Payra Port fully operational by early next year.

The minister said that to fully operationalise Payra Port, construction of a 1,180-meter-long four-lane bridge over the Andharmanik river and a 6.35 km six-lane terminal connecting road from the jetty to the Dhaka-Kuakata highway is nearing completion.

“These works are expected to finish by December this year, enabling the port to become fully operational early next year,” he said.

He added that to maintain navigability of the Rabnabad Channel and to build the port’s own dredging capacity, the project titled “Maintenance Dredging of Rabnabad Channel and Procurement of Two Hopper Dredgers” has been approved. Once implemented, by 2027-28, Payra Port will be able to accommodate all types of vessels.

In response to a question from NCP MP Abul Hasnat, the shipping minister also said that according to the updated list prepared by the National River Protection Commission, there are 21,982 illegal encroachers on rivers across the country. District administrations have been requested to publish the list on websites and send action plans for eviction.

Once the ministry receives lists of encroachers marked for immediate eviction, operations will be carried out nationwide to free rivers from illegal occupation, he added.

FP/MI