Now, portal for queue management of vehicles at int’l border check posts

KOLKATA: The state government has developed a portal for online queue management system for seamless movement of vehicles upto the international border check posts across the state.

“Transporters/ exporters from all over the country who have been exporting their goods to Bangladesh by road from various international border check posts located at the Indo–Bangla border have been facing acute problem of long travel times as well as other malpractices. There was a backlog of huge number of trucks waiting to reach the border check posts at any given time. Now the exporters may book slots for seamless movement of their vehicles upto international border check posts using the software platform that has been developed by Information Technology and Electronics (IT &E) department,” a senior official of the state Transport department said.

Unloaded trucks will have to pay Rs 5000 while loaded trucks have to cough up Rs 10000

The Director, Transport Directorate has been appointed as the nodal officer for effective co ordination between the agencies. “Vehicles carrying medicines, perishable goods and other essential commodities are being given priority,” added the official. However, exporters need to pay a fee for using the software platform of the IT & E department. Unloaded trucks will have to pay Rs 5000 while loaded trucks have to cough up Rs 10000. The Transport department has further made it clear that any officer engaged for this purpose should not liaise with his counterpart in Bangladesh to facilitate cargo transportation. It should be confined to the territorial jurisdiction of the Transport department for the purpose of facilitating the transportation. The department has also ordered proper police checking of vehicles upto the BSF reach point. The Transport department in February had officially acquired all the truck terminals situated at the international borders prodded by the instructions of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who had said that some people have been taking money from the truck terminal functioning along the border.The Transport department has initiated the process of setting up state-of-the art truck terminuses at Petrapole, Bongaon and Ghojadanga in North 24 Parganas, Changrabanda in Cooch Behar, Joygaon in Alipurduar, Mahadipur in Malda, Hili in South Dinajpur, Phulbari in Jalpaiguri and Panitanki in Darjeeling.