Smugglers rule outer anchorage, Karnaphuli

The boats --'Samikka' and Sophen'-- were used by the anti-smuggling rummage team for launching regular drive at the outer anchorage of Chittagong port, Karnaphuli river and other vulnerable sea and river points.

But there is no move to repair the boats for reasons unknown, port and customs sources said.

As a result, anti-smuggling operation is has almost been suspended, which became a boon for smugglers' syndicates operating at the outer anchorage and the river Karnaphuli.

Some vested quarters in collusion with a section of customs officials made the patrol boats useless with a view to hindering the anti-smuggling drive at the high sea and river Karnaphuli, sources said.

Customs rummage team, however, denied the allegation, saying that letters were issued to the authorities on many occasions seeking funds for repair of the boats.

"But they are yet to respond, so what can we do?" rummage team official Md. Habib said.

With the suspension of anti-smuggling drive at the sea, the rummage team members mostly pass their time doing nothing, sources said.

Some liner vessels, operating between Chittagong port and other foreign ports to carry cargo, were reportedly engaged in dropping smuggled goods at the outer anchorage, sources said.

Those goods are brought to the shore through different coastal routes and the river Karnaphuli by high-powered mechanised boats or fishing trawlers.

Due to lax anti-smuggling drive, the smugglers' syndicates now use the river Karnaphuli as a safe route to shore up the smuggled consignment, sources said.

Chittagong Customs House Commissioner Mosrur Ahmed said, "We are trying to procure fund to repair the two high-powered patrol boats".

"Without the patrol boats it is difficult to conduct anti-smuggling drive at sea and river," Mosrur said, adding that our anti-smuggling rummage team now only concentrates on search operation on board the vessels that take berth at Chittagong port.

The biggest ever cache of smuggled arms and ammunition, including 1790 sophisticated AK-47 rifles, rockets and rocket launchers and 25,000 hand grenades, was seized on April 2 at the jetty of Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Limited (CUFL) on the bank of the river Karnaphuli near the rummage team's office.

Police and intelligence sources said that the consignment of the arms and ammunition was unloaded at the outer anchorage from where two fishing trawlers carried the same to CUFL jetty.

After the haul, customs intelligence and other government agencies are keeping a watch on three cargo vessels as those ships arrived at the outer anchorage the previous night.

These vessels are MV QC Honour, MV Orient Feedom and MV Ocean Moray, customs intelligence sources said.