Satkhira Correspondent

In the first 11 months (July-May) of the current 2025-26 fiscal year, Satkhira's Bhomra Land Port has collected Tk 1,118,27,998 less revenue than the target. Concerned people say that this major collapse in revenue collection has occurred due to a decrease in imports and exports due to tensions in bilateral relations.

According to sources at Bhomra Custom House, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) had set a revenue collection target of Tk 2,648.9 crore for the custom house in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year. However, due to the slowdown in import-export trade, the custom house authorities could not meet that target.

Talking to port businessmen and officials, it is learned that the political changes and strained bilateral relations have had a negative impact on the port. As a result, imports and exports have decreased significantly compared to before, which has directly affected revenue collection.

However, Assistant Commissioner of Bhomra Custom House, Mostafa Kamal, claimed that the port has a favorable environment for trade expansion. He said, there are no obstacles in conducting business and equal rights have been ensured for all traders. Our main objective is to make the trade system dynamic and versatile. Through trade expansion, employment and poverty alleviation of a large population of the country is possible.

Meanwhile, the country's top businessmen are putting their trust in the current government after the political change, said Abu Musa, general secretary of Bhomra Custom C&F Agents Association. He said that the businessmen are looking forward with optimism. They believe that a suitable environment for trade and investment will be created, which will help restore the confidence of domestic and foreign investors and international buyers.

However, many people associated with the port believe that the picture on the ground is somewhat different. An official of the Bhomra Port Import-Export Association, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that there is currently an extreme recession in trade and commerce. The decline in imports and exports, revenue deficit, and lack of investment and employment have made the business community face a difficult reality. The government is losing billions of taka in revenue due to the strained bilateral relations. It is necessary to take effective initiatives quickly to overcome this deadlock in the trade sector.