The Mongla Port Authority (MPA) has honoured Bashundhara Industrial Complex Limited (BICL) and Bashundhara Shipping Limited (BSL), two concerns of Bashundhara Group, as the top importer of general goods and the contributor of the highest volume of duty.

Marking the 71st founding anniversary, the port authorities on Wednesday awarded Bashundhara Industrial Complex as the importer of the highest volume of general goods.

Meanwhile, Bashundhara Shipping Limited received the award as the highest duty contributor as a shipping agent.
Shipping secretary Mohammad Mezbah Uddin Chowdhury was the chief guest at the function held at the port premises in Bagerhat.

On behalf of Bashundhara Group, Mongla plant’s head of accounts Rabiul Islam received the awards from Mongla Port Authority (MPA) Chairman Mohammad Musa.

Bashundhara Group produces high-quality cement with the world’s latest Vertical Roller Mill (VRM) technology of Germany at Bashundhara Industrial Complex in Mongla.

As one of the three seaports in the country, Mongla Port has been contributing to the national economy through facilitating modern services to local and international ships.

In the last one decade, the port gained momentum in revenue income. The port’s saw over 62 per cent growth in revenue over the last five years, according to officials.

Mongla Port Authority Chairman Mohammad Musa said the port has been turned into a profitable one from a loss-making facility.
“Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took several visionary projects after assuming office. From then, the port set a new example in welcoming local and foreign ships. Mongla port has been transformed into an international port,” said Musa, a rear admiral of Bangladesh Navy.

The revenue of the port stood at Tk 3.4 billion in FY 2020-21, which is 61.94 percent higher than the revenue of Tk 2.26 billion in FY 2016-17. The port earned Tk 2.76 billion in FY 2017-18 and Tk 3.29 billion in FY 2018-19.

During the pandemic-hit years, Mongla port maintained moderated growth with an income of Tk 3.38 billion in FY 2019-20 and Tk 3.4 billion in FY 2020-21.

The state-run facility was a loss-making concern during the 2001 to 2008 period, facing a loss of Tk 110 million in FY 2004-05.

Mongla Port found its golden days when the Awami League-led government took office in 2008 and gave priority to the port. The port began to set new records of serving a significant number of ships from then.

In December 2017, as many as 87 commercial ships arrived at the port in a month. In February 2019, a total of 100 ships anchored at the port. The port created a record in December 2020 by serving 117 ships.

Mongla Port served 623 ships in FY 2016-17, which increased to 784 in FY 2017-18. In FY 2018-19, some 912 ships anchored in the port. The number of ships stood at 903 in FY 2019-20 and 970 in FY 2020-21.

In terms of cargo handling, the port also continued excellence by dealing an increased volume of freights in the last five years.

In FY 2016-17, the port handled 7.51 million tones of cargos and the number reached 9.71 million tones in the following fiscal. Mongla Port set a new benchmark by serving 11.31 million tonnes of cargo in FY 2018-19.

When the global economy experienced setback amid the pandemic, Mongla Port saw a higher cargo volume. The cargo volume stood at 11.03 million tonnes in FY 2019-20 and 11.94 million tonnes in FY 2020-21.

Mongla Port is situated in the southwestern part of the country at the confluence of Possur River and Mongla Nulla, approximately 71 Nautical miles upstream of the Bay of Bengal.

The port was established on December 01, 1950. Port operations began on December 11 of the same year following the anchorage of a British commercial ship named “The City of Leons” at Joymonirgol of the Pasur River.