The Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has said that the new system, by which a pool of drivers with special allowance has been created to take cargo through the drive-in scanner at the International Container Transshipment Terminal, is adding to the cost of business at the terminal.
Chamber president Madhusudan Gupta said a lot of fear had been created by certain groups regarding the safety of the scanner. The development was deliberate with a view to collecting “exorbitant risk allowance”, he said.
The Chamber has requested the Customs Department to come forward to clarify to trade unions that there was no health hazards in the use of the scanner. The safety concerns could be addressed without the use of an outside agency to provide drivers with protective gear, said Mr. Gupta, who added that the scanner was of international standards and was used at various ports worldwide.
Besides, the scanner did scan only the container and not the front portion of the vehicle where the driver was seated.
‘Health risks’
The container carrier drivers serving the transshipment terminal had gone on a strike in May this year claiming that the drivers, who went through the scanner faced health risks, a claim refuted by the authorities, including the Customs Department. However, an agreement was reached in which the authorities complied to form a pool of drivers with special vests to take the containers through the scanner.
