BY MAHEESHA MUDUGAMUWA Weeks after restarting economic activities, operations at the Colombo Port are returning to normal, despite a few issues raised by several importers and container handlers regarding the delay in container clearance. As learnt by The Sunday Morning, the container backlog at the Colombo Port, due to the coronavirus lockdown, has now been cleared and the Port has already started the usual operations. However, speaking to The Sunday Morning, All Ceylon Container Transport Employees’ Union (ACCTEU) General Secretary B.I. Abdeen said that although the containers stuck due to the coronavirus have been cleared, the usual delay is still there when releasing the containers. “We have been talking about this issue for years but the problem remains the same. This delay is not because of the coronavirus,” Abdeen stressed. The Colombo Port is packed with over 40,000 containers after the coronavirus crisis disrupted economic activities in April. However, three container terminals at the Port have been operating throughout the crisis at full capacity, but vessel calls have started to decrease. With lockdown restrictions being eased by the Government on 11 May, the shipyard, which had been operating at a 20-30% capacity, providing only essential repair services and completing vessels undergoing repairs in the yard, is now returning to normal levels. Even though operations have returned to normal, All Ceylon Port General Workers’ Union (ACPGWU) General Secretary Chandrasiri Mahagamage said that only the essential containers were currently being received by the Port and therefore, there wasn't any blockage as such at the Port. “Earlier, the containers were stuck at the Port without being cleared due to the coronavirus curfew in the country. But after the curfew was lifted, the blockage has been cleared,” he noted. According to Mahagamage, commercial activities are not fully operating at the Port. As of the second week of April, the capacity at terminals at the Colombo Port reached its maximum capacity with over 26,000 freight containers and was facing issues with regard to space as sea freight is continuing as usual. The Port requested importers to take away their freight containers as soon as possible to avoid any inconveniences. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Customs told The Sunday Morning that their operations have also returned to normal. Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Sri Lanka Customs Deputy Director Aqthar Hassen noted that Customs operations are conducted in the usual way at present. According to Sri Lanka Customs, a strict and systematic arrangement for the immediate release of essential commodities from the Port premises itself has been prepared. However, the operations are being conducted subject to health and safety measures notified by the Government, especially to minimise human congregations, according to Customs. In addition, Customs is expected to facilitate online information dissemination and payment processing to minimise the crowd arriving at the Customs Headquarters. However, a representative of the businessmen will be present at the container testing sites. While around 200 to 300 containers a day are being released by Customs, priority will be given to containers of essential goods such as food items, perishable goods, medicines, medical devices, and related items with the objective to provide essential items to the public without delay. The release of other bulk items, commodities, or raw materials intended to be used for essential services or the manufacturing of essential goods such as gas, petroleum, fertilisers, cement, etc. will also be facilitated, subject to approval. However, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) last month decided to charge a late fee to clear containers stuck at the Colombo Port. A concessionary period granted by the Government to clear the containers had expired on 7 May and a late fee would now be charged. It has been suggested that the charges will be doubled if late fees were not paid within eight days. Meanwhile, the importers affected by the delay in releasing containers are now saying their containers are being released by the ports according to the usual process and there was no delay at present like a few weeks ago. Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Sri Lanka Trade Development Council (SLTDC) Chairman Roshana Waduge said that the importers had to face real difficulty over the past few months due to the delay in releasing their containers. “But now, the situation has returned to normal. There was no considerable delay in releasing the containers,” he stressed.