CHITTAGONG: The business sectors including the export–import sectors are still struggling to be normal though the public life has come to a normalcy during the ongoing hartal-blockades.

The environment of investment is also still to be restored. The productions in the factories and mills are not yet fully in operation.

Recession is clearly visible in the trade and businesses. The young entrepreneurs and the business persons are viewing this as a threat to the economy of the country.

If businesses face this sort of obstacles it is destined to hurt the economic progress of the country.

The young entrepreneurs of Chittagong pointed out this sort of overall grim picture in a meeting with the Editor-in-Chief of Banglanews Alamgir Hossain at Chittagong Khulshi Club on Thursday noon.

The young business persons informed him that after January 5 there was no transportation of goods for two months as no transports did ply on roads.

The goods were carried with high fared transports. Though the production cost increased but the price could not be hiked that resulted huge loss. The transport owners also faced huge loss.

Albion group chairman and JCI Bangladesh National Committee director Raisuluddin Saikat said, ‘The purchaser could not go to Dhaka for hartal-blockades that led to fall in sale of goods’.

This business person said, ‘Mitford of Dhaka is the main market of the country (especially for medicine) but as there was transport crisis the purchasers of North Bengal could not come there. For same reason, the patients could not come to the physicians of the towns and cities for treatment resulting fall in medicine business’.

Director of Fulkoli Products Limited and vice-president of Junior Chamber International (JCI) Chittagong Cosmopolitan Ghiasuddin said, ‘Though the cost of products increased due to hartal- blockades including other related costs, the price of selling could not be increased. For this reason the businesses are facing losses’. 

This trader related with food production said, ‘We used to hire a truck for carrying goods from Dhaka to Sylhet at Taka 15 thousand to Taka 18 thousand earlier. But that fare has shot up to Taka 60 thousand in hartal–blockades still that transport could not be made available’.

President of JCI Chittagong Cosmopolitan and Executive Editor of daily ‘Azadi’ Shihab Malik said, ‘It needs political stability to keep the wheel of economy on move. Without economic progress no country can march forward’.

When Bangladesh was marching forward economically that moment the senseless hartal-blockades have created panic situation. Young entrepreneurs and JC group Bangladesh director Abu Taleb Siddique said, ‘if this kind of situation cannot be averted then the country will lag behind’. 

He sought the cooperation of the government in reducing the bank interest as the business came to a halt. He also called upon all to keep the education sector from the purview of hartal.

The owner of BrandMax Towhid Ahmed said that the young entrepreneurs are coming up and they will establish themselves if government cooperates them and they will contribute in the economy of the country.

The businessmen also think that gradually the normalcy is coming back bringing pace in economic activities and hoped that it will be fully restored.

The young entrepreneurs think that the people of the country has developed a negative perception about politics after observing this kind of violence, killing of people, destruction of properties and insecurity that slapped in the name political programs.

Banglanews Editor-in-Chief Alamgir Hossain pointed out that Bangladesh will achieve economic prosperity through the young generation and mentioned that the youths are now coming in business featuring their quick involvement with information technology.

He said, ‘The new generation is growing with modern mindset. They will be able to adapt modern technology well. They have a knack towards modern technology’.

The chief of the most popular online news portal in Bangladesh further said that, ‘Now none waits for next day to read news. The online news portals are disseminating news right at the very moment of occurrence. Even the analysis of same news story is also available at the same moment’.

BDST: 2135 HRS, MAR 19, 2015