KOCHI: In the latest development in connection with the detention of 60 transshipment containers at the Vallarpadam International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT), a specially chartered vessel is arriving in Kochi on Saturday to carry the detained containers.The vessel, ‘Dhalia,’ has been chartered by the shipping major CMA CGM, which recently started mainline service to European ports. The Customs authorities on November 18 had blocked the transshipment of 60 containers brought from Thoothukudi. The Customs offloaded the containers from the mainline vessel ‘Turungia Express’ which had to leave Kochi after a delay of a few hours without carrying the detained containers.It was scheduled to leave Kochi at 6 pm last Friday. Meanwhile, the Dubai Port World (DP World), Vallarpadam, maintained that they had not made any statement that the shipping line might withdraw the direct European service from Vallarpadam. Its true that the detention of containers had caused embarrassment to the trading community, they said. “The vessel is expected to reach Kochi on Saturday. It is coming to take the detained containers only,” said a top official of the DP World. The DP World authorities further said that they had been following all norms while exporting cargo.The containers were brought to ICTT from Thoothukudi and were waiting for the mainline vessel to be transshipped to European ports.The sudden inspection by the customs authorities had caused a delay in the sailing of the vessel. The Customs and the SEZ authorities are at loggerheads over the inspection of consignments by the former at the ICTT. The SEZ authorities’ stand is that inspection cannot be permitted in the SEZ area. But that is not acceptable to the Customs.
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