March 29, 2024, 6:27 am


Staff Correspondent

Published:
2020-11-28 16:28:40 BdST

2nd green channel to be set up at HSIA


The government is going to set up a second green channel at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the capital with a view easing the sufferings of inbound passengers.

Sources said Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and National Board of Revenue (NBR) have been working together to launch a new green channel at the airport aiming to improve services for the passengers.

The green channel, depicted by a green line at the customs clearance at the airports, is meant for passengers having no dutiable goods to declare while the red channel is for those who have dutiable goods to declare.

In a recent letter last week, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism directed the NBR to immediately take initiatives in this regard in coordination with the Civil Aviation Authority.

CAAB and NBR, the two government wings, are working to ensure better services for the inbound air passengers.

“Although the service-providing agencies have improved luggage and immigration services, passengers are not being able to exit through the airport smoothly due to delay in baggage screening,” the letter mentioned.

Considering the fact, the ministry has requested the CAAB and NBR to work on a second green channel at Hazrat Shahjalal International Ariport. There is an exclusive green channel at the airport for the incoming passengers.

In its follow-up, the civil aviation authority informed the ministry that it is set to open a second green channel at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and if the NBR extends its support, it will be possible to launch it within a short period of time, according to the letter.

A CAAB official said the green channel saves time for those passengers carrying no dutiable goods.

If a customs officer on duty has any reasonable basis to suspect that a passenger is carrying dutiable goods, he or she may challenge the passenger passing through the green channel, he added.

Shahjalal International Airport is the prime airport of the country which handles around 4 million international and one million domestic passengers every year.

Inbound passengers especially expatriate Bangladeshi workers complain that they face hassle at the airport. Sometimes, it takes hours to exit from the airport due to slow pace of luggage, baggage, immigration and screening formalities.

Officials said another green channel will facilitate passenger service and ease their sufferings.

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