Second wave of Covid-19 adds to the crisis of import container shortage

Owing to the healthcare emergency in the country, industrial usage of oxygen has been completely prohibited. Oxygen is an essential component for the repair and welding of damaged containers and due to the prohibition it cannot be availed for repairing damaged containers. There are thousands of empty import containers lying un-repaired. This has further added to the crisis of container shortage among the EXIM fraternity.The repair of containers has also got impacted due to a shortage of labours to handle the repair work. It has affected the movement of essential products, including daily needs and medical supplies. Along with oxygen, the major setback on the freight delays could be seen differently in different commodities.Also, the dwelling time for containers has almost doubled due to the rise of second wave globally. Earlier an average container dwelling time at the port for clearance ranged between 25-30 days but today with the second wave resulting in shortage in labourers, drivers, lack of space on vessels etc. has resulted in significant rise in the dwelling time which has go up to 45-50 days