FM Maritime unveils plan to cut container delays at Karachi, Qasim ports
İslamabad : — A set of recommendations has been finalized to reduce container dwell time at Karachi Port and Port Qasim, with the objective of improving cargo clearance efficiency and easing congestion at the country’s two key seaports.
These proposals were presented to the Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs, Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry, by the high-level committee formed for this purpose.
The minister instructed that the recommendations be forwarded to the Federal Board of Revenue the same day, with directions to prepare an implementation plan within two weeks.
Acting Chairman Karachi Port Trust, Rear Admiral Ateeq-ur-Rehman, and Rear Admiral Muhammad Khalid, Director Operations of Port Qasim Authority joined the meeting via video link from Karachi.
The committee itself was established by the minister and is chaired by Umer Zafar Sheikh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Maritime Affairs, with representation from KPT, PQA, Pakistan Customs, terminal operators, FBR, and other relevant stakeholders.
The minister emphasized that the plan seeks to align Pakistan’s port operations with global benchmarks, enabling faster clearances, smoother trade flows, and reduced operational costs for businesses.
He also restructured the committee, assigning it a new mandate as an implementation body responsible for coordinating with the FBR and monitoring progress within the specified timeframe.
The recommendations focus on addressing bottlenecks across the clearance chain, from delays in goods declaration filing, adjudication, and laboratory testing, to issues related to transportation, examination, auctioning, and gate-out processes.
Key measures include promoting early or pre-arrival filing of goods declarations, shortening the filing window, and introducing fines for late submissions. Virtual hearings have been proposed to speed up adjudication, while the use of rapid screening technologies and expanded laboratory facilities has been advised to reduce testing delays.
To ease congestion at terminals, the committee has recommended faster auctioning and disposal of overstayed cargo, expansion of grounding capacity, and greater deployment of labour and customs examiners.
Around-the-clock operations have been suggested for customs assessments, examinations, laboratory work, and shipping services. Transportation improvements include extending bonded transit, simplifying tracker installation, increasing escort staff, and lifting night-time restrictions on heavy vehicles.
Plans for infrastructure development highlight the need for truck holding areas, dedicated rail freight corridors, and multi-modal transport systems to reduce reliance on roads.
Digitalization forms another major component of the strategy, with proposals for artificial intelligence-based risk profiling of importers, the creation of a dedicated stakeholder portal within the WeBOC system, e-auction facilities, and real-time communication channels linking terminals, traders, and transporters.
The committee has also recommended reducing the free period for containers under the green and yellow channel from five days to three, enforcing strict gate-out timelines, and introducing penalties for non-compliance.
Sohail Majeed is a Special Correspondent at The Diplomatic Insight. He has twelve plus years of experience in journalism & reporting. He covers International Affairs, Diplomacy, UN, Sports, Climate Change, Economy, Technology, and Health.
