[CBIC Circular
No. 17/2022-Customs dated 9 September 2022]
References
have been received from line Ministries as well as trade to allow export of goods
in closed containers from an Inland Container Depot (ICD) to Bangladesh using inland
waterways. It has been suggested that goods cleared at an ICD for export may be
transported to the gateway port of Kolkata or Haldia by road or rail, and further
from the gateway port to Bangladesh utilising the inland
waterways route as agreed under the Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT)
between India and Bangladesh. Recently, in the 'Waterways Conclave 2022' organised by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI)
in April 2022, several stakeholders had evinced interest in using the inland waterways
for exports to Bangladesh.
2.
Earlier,
with a view to decongest border points, minimize interventions at the border and
provide speedier clearance to exports to neighbouring
countries, the Board had issued Circular No. 52/2017- Customs dated 22.12.2017,
which was amended vide Circular No. 32/2018-Customs
dated 17.09.2018 and further amended vide
Circular No. 39/2020-Customs dated 04.09.2020. The said Circular 52/2017- Customs,
as amended, lays down the procedure for off-border export clearance at an ICD/CFS
and subsequent movement of cargo in containers or closed bodied trucks under ECTS
seal from the said ICD/CFS to Bangladesh, Nepal or Bhutan through specified Land
Customs Stations (LCS). The said Circular envisages movement of cargo by road or
rail, but does not provide for use of inland waterways.
3.
Therefore,
to augment multi-modal connectivity approach and leverage the bilaterally agreed
inland waterways routes between India and Bangladesh under the PIWTT (hereinafter
referred as 'IBP routes'), the Board has now decided to extend the provision of
off-border clearance at ICDs for containerised movement
of export cargo under e-seal to Bangladesh using inland waterways, as an additional
measure towards trade facilitation. The goods cleared at the ICDs shall be first
brought by road or rail to the gateway ports of Kolkata or Haldia, from where the
containers shall be loaded on a barge/vessel for further journey by riverine route
to Bangladesh through Land Customs Station of Hemnagar.
3.1.
This
essentially entails two legs of journey:
a)
the
first leg involves movement of customs cleared export cargo, after grant of the
Let Export Order, from ICD to gateway port of Kolkata or Haldia by rail or road;
and
b)
the
second leg involves the unloading of cargo from train/truck and further loading
on to a barge/vessel at the gateway port of Kolkata or Haldia for final exit/cross
over to Bangladesh through LCS Hemnagar using the IBP
route.
For ensuring secure movement,
e-seals shall be used on the containers through the entire journey. Further modalities
are explained in the subsequent paragraphs 3.2 and 3.3.
3.2
First
leg of the movement from ICD to gateway port of Kolkata or Haldia by road or rail:
i)
The
exporters shall bring goods meant for export to an ICD, and file a Shipping Bill
on EDI. For generation of ETP (Export Transhipment Permit),
details of Kolkata Port or Haldia Port, as the case may be, shall be entered as
the gateway port.
ii)
The
goods shall be stuffed in containers and each container shall be duly sealed with
a tamperproof RFID e-seal. In terms of Para 9(vii) of Circular No. 26/2017-Customs,
the data such as nan e of the exporter, IEC code, GSTIN number, description of the
goods, tax invoice number, nan e of the authorized signatory (for affixing the seal)
and Shipping Bill number shall be fed in the e-seal, before sealing a container.
The unique serial number of RFID e-seal shall be declared in the Shipping Bill.
iii)
The
Shipping Bill shall be assessed and goods shall be examined as per EDI/RMS procedures.
LEO shall be granted when all legal and regulatory requirements are met. The integrity
of the RFID e-seals on the containers shall be verified with RFID e-seal reader
by the Customs Officer before goods leave the ICD.
iv)
The
authorised carrier shall be responsible for the safe and
secure transportation of the containerized cargo from the ICD till final exit from
LCS Hemnagar. For this purpose, the authorised carrier shall also enter into a transshipment bond
with the jurisdictional Pr. Commissioner of Customs I Commissioner of Customs of the ICD for an amount and in the man1ner as prescribed by the said Pr. Commissioner or Commissioner.
v)
The
above steps outlined, and any further procedure prescribed, for the movement of
such export cargo from an ICD to the ports of Kolkata or Haldia, shall necessarily
also follow the extant procedure prescribed for transhipment
of export consignments from ICDs to gateway ports.
3.3
Second
leg of the movement from gateway port to Bangladesh through LCS using IBP route:
vi)
At
the gateway port, e-Gatepass copy of Shipping Bill shall
be presented by the authorised carrier to the Customs
officer.
vii)
Once
the containers have been unloaded from the respective carrier (train or truck) for
onward loading onto a barge/vessel at the gateway port, the Customs Officer at the
port shall first verify the RFID e-seals on all containers, for tampering if any,
through RFID reader and only if found in order, endorse the same on the eGatepass copy of the Shipping Bill presented by the authorised carrier. In case the RFID reader indicates the e-seal
as tampered, such a container shall be subject to 100% examination. During the examination,
if the goods are found in order, the consignment shall be allowed for further onward
movement. However, if the goods are not found as per the details presented in the
Shipping Bill, the matter shall be brought to the notice of the Deputy Commissioner/Assistant
Commissioner of the ICD from where the goods had been cleared for exports and further
necessary action shall be initiated as per the extant provisions under the Customs
Act, 1962.
viii)
For
loading onto the barge/vessel, the Master of Barge / Vessel shall submit loading/
placement plan of the containers to the Customs Officer at the Kolkata or Haldia
port, as the case may be, clearly describing the details of placement, container
wise and hold wise, along with a schematic diagram showcasing the containers that
are placed at each level on the Barge/Vessel. The Customs officer shall read the
RFID e-seal on each container before allowing loading onto the Barge/Vessel, for
verifying that each container is properly sealed and that the RFID e-seal corresponds
to the details captured on the Shipping Bill. The placement of the containers shall
be ensured by the Master of Barge/Vessel in such a manner that the sealed side,
to the extent possible, is kept accessible for ease of checking at LCS Hemnagar by Customs. The Customs officer at Kolkata/Haldia port
shall ensure that placement plan is tamper proof and only limited containers (if
any) are inaccessible on account of the design/infrastructure limitation of a hold.
ix)
Where
possible after loading, each hold of the Barge/Vessel shall be covered with heavy-duty
tarpaulin secured by rope and sealed with RFID seals, and one Electronic Cargo Tracking
System (ECTS) seal shall also be affixed for real time tracking of the cargo. Where
tarpaulin cover on a hold is not possible considering the nature of stacking, one
container selected randomly by the Customs officer will be additionally sealed with
ECTS seal. The Customs officer at the concerned gateway port (Kolkata/ Haldia) shall regularly monitor the movement
on ECTS web portal. The authorised carrier shall be responsible
for obtaining e-seals (RFID and ECTS) from approved vendors.
x)
The
authorised carrier / Barge or Vessel Operator shall file EGM on EDI as per prescribed procedure.
xi)
Once
the Barge / Vessel sails for Hemnagar from Kolkata /
Haldia port, the Customs Officer at the concerned port shall forward a detailed
report consisting of the loading/placement plan of the containers on the Barge/Vessel,
RFID and ECTS seal numbers with corresponding container details to the Customs officer
at LCS Hemnagar through e-office. Scanned copy of the
endorsed e-Gatepass Shipping Bill shall also be forwarded
with this report.
xii)
At
LCS Hemnagar, the Customs Officer shall verify integrity
of all RFID e-seals as well as the ECTS seal placed on tarpaulin cover and cross-verify
the same with the report received from the officers of Kolkata/Haldia port on e-office.
Where tarpaulin cover could not be placed on a hold at Kolkata/Haldia port, the
Customs officer at Hemnagar shall verify integrity of
RFID e-seals on all such containers that are accessible for checking, and of the
ECTS seal.
xiii)
If
everything is found in order, the ECTS seals shall be removed and cross border movement
of the barge for export to Bangladesh shall be allowed at LCS Hemnagar. The Customs Officer at LCS Hemnagar
shall record border crossing report with sailing date and communicate the same through
e-office to the Customs officer at the concerned gateway port (Kolkata/Haldia). However, if the seals are found tampered with
or the consignment does not conform to the description in any manner, the Customs
officer at Hemnagar shall promptly notify the concerned
Customs officer at Kolkata or Haldia port of the discrepancy found and thereafter
accompany the barge on its return movement to Kolkata or Haldia for further examination.
On reaching Kolkata or Haldia port, the containers of the said barge shall be unloaded
and examined by the Customs officer of the concerned port.
xiv)
Based
on the border crossing report shared by Customs officer of LCS Hemnagar, the Customs officer at the gate way port (Kolkata
/ Haldia) shall enter the sailing date
in the EDI system for reconciliation of the Export General Manifest (EGM), upon
which the bond for safe movement from ICD till LCS Hemnagar
shall be re-credited/ discharged at the
ICD.
4.
Suitable
Public Notice(s) delineating the finer procedural details shall be issued by the
Kolkata Customs Zone. Difficulties, if any, faced in the implementation of this
Circular should be brought to the notice of the Board.
5.
The
above procedure shall remain applicable till suitable changes are made in ICES by
DG Systems, linking LCS Hemnagar with ICDs. Further, on
full implementation of the Sea Cargo Manifest and Transhipment
Regulations, 2018, relevant aspects, if any, prescribed under the said regulations,
that have applicability to the movements dealt in the present Circular shall apply,
and this procedure may undergo change for that purpose.
F.
No.550/05/2011-LC(Pt)