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Indian container trade moving via terminals in Nhava Sheva Port (JNPA) are in danger of delays and missed connection, due to landside strains.
The congestion — simmering for weeks after a build-up of Middle East-related transhipment volumes — has resulted in finger-pointing among stakeholders on how to deal with the crisis.
Container trailer owners are struggling with a severe shortage of drivers, but they claim gate operational problems at terminals have compounded cargo flow issues.
“The current challenges are being further aggravated due to non-adherence to FIFO [first-in, first-out] deliveries and under-utilisation of the available vehicles,” the Nhava Sheva Container Operators’ Welfare Association (NSCOWA) told the port authority.
“While there may be several operational issues, the immediate requirement… is for all stakeholders to collectively work towards extracting maximum output from the limited available resources.”
According to NSCOWA, terminals need to proactively work on vehicle turnaround times “to keep available fleets operationally optimal”.
The trucking group added: “We earnestly urge JNPA to closely monitor and regulate the turnaround time of vehicles, from the moment they join the terminal queue outside the gate until they are gated out. Reduction in idle waiting time will significantly improve fleet productivity and help mitigate the ongoing evacuation crisis.”
On the other hand, container depot operators in JNPA largely blame the cargo slowdowns/disruption on additional yard density challenges from an influx of ad-hoc transhipment containers, “resulting in a marked slowdown in terminal gate operations”, said the Container Freight Stations Association of India (CFSAI).
“This has led to frequent congestion on approach roads to the terminals, with trailers and drivers experiencing extended waiting times of several hours before gaining entry,” it complained.
CFSAI claimed that, while it had already been engaging with all stakeholders “to explore freight flow improvement measures”, its members should not be held responsible for any service failures when factors remained beyond their control.
However, JNPA denied there had been any productivity slowdowns on the side of terminal operators.
“Contrary to claims of congestion, the port’s operations remain uninterrupted,” the authority said. “The current challenge lies not within the port terminals, but in the shortage of trailers and drivers provided by container freight stations and custom brokers.”
JNPA also claimed terminals had “marshalled additional manpower resources to expedite the pace of container movements”, thus shortening truck wait times.
The port also said yard occupancy levels continued to be “well within control”, despite additional transhipment handling, with stacked yard utilisation, as of 7 May, estimated at 67% of available space.
The authority put the onus on container freight station operators and customs brokers to mobilise sufficient trailer capacity and associated workers to remedy the backlogged situation.
JNPA – through its five container terminals – handled 771,418 teu last month, up 15.5% year on year, according to new data.
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