The National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (Natpac) under the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment has undertaken a study of the cost of transport of goods using container carriers from Kochi. Natpac sources said that inputs for the study were being collected and that it would take some more time before the report was ready.
“The study requires a lot of inputs, including the cost of spare parts. Collection of accurate data has become a little more complicated with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax regime,” sources said.
Natpac was called upon to take up the study as there was no uniform charges for the users of container carriers operating out of Kochi port premises. There are around 2,000 container lorries, split between 40-foot and 20-foot carriers, serving the Kochi port and associated facilities. However, no formal rates have been fixed.
“While petroleum and other goods carriers have charges fixed on the basis of scientific data input, there was no such facility for container carriers, leading to some disputes in the past,” said Charles George, convener of Trade Union Coordination Committee, representing the crew of container lorries.
He was referring to a recent ruling by the Competition Commission of India that the ‘turn system’, which was introduced by container carrier owners a few years ago was a non-competitive practice, was tantamount to price fixing. However, the Commission had not imposed any penalty on container carrier owners represented by various organisations.
A representative of owners of container carriers told The Hindu that the Competition Commission had not imposed any fine on container carrier owners, and that ‘turn system’ was not prevalent at present.
Mr. George said that even if the transport cost was fixed, the serious competition among container carriers would result in the cost getting slashed from trip to trip. The competition was severe because most owners were small-time businessmen, he added.
The severe competitive slashing of rates also affected the wages and incentives of the crew who are paid a percentage of the total transport cost, said Mr. George. Therefore it was important that formal rates were fixed based on scientific inputs and that Natpac should come out with the study at the earliest, he said.