Mongla Port, the second largest sea harbour of the country, witnessed the anchoring of at least 970 foreign ships in the 2020-21 fiscal year, breaking all previous records in its history.
The ship mostly contained car, coal, fertilizer cement clinker, LPG carrying vessels, ceramic materials, various raw materials and equipment of Rooppur nuclear plant and railway line project etc.
In 2019-2020 FY, the port witnessed anchoring of at least 903 foreign ships while 912 in 2018-2019 FY, 784 in 2017-2018 FY and 623 in 2016-17 FY.
“The record touched a milestone in the yearly statistics in the last seven decades after the establishment of the port near the Bay of Bengal in 1950,” said deputy secretary of Mongla Port Authority (MPA) Md Makhruzzaman.
A total of thirteen development projects and seven ADB programmes were implemented from 2009 to 2020 involving Taka over 20.0 billion aiming to enhance the ability of Mongla Port, Makhruzzaman said.
The official, however, said the port has already ensured different facilities for the port users to get speedy and quality services.
The facilities include capital dredging at the Pashur River, purchasing 42 containers and cargo handling machinery and setting up a modern channel at Pashur River to arrive and discharge foreign ships round the clock.
Chairman of Mongla Port Authority Rear Admiral Mohammad Musa informed that the port has earned a profit of Taka 2.26 billion in 2016-17 FY while Taka 2.76 billion in 2017-18 FY, Taka 3.29 billion in 2018-19, Taka 3.38 billion in 2019-20 FY, and Taka 3.40 billion in 2020-21 FY.