Trade put in a spot of bother
While the major technical issues that cropped up following the migration of the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system to version 1.5 of Indian Customs EDI System (ICES) at JN Custom House have been resolved, the stoppage of operations for a few days following implementation of the new version from April 1 and the resultant backlog have made life difficult for the trade at Jawaharlal Nehru Port over the past few days, it is learnt.
This was reportedly compounded by the shortage of personnel at JN Customs, according to sources, and the huge volumes, which led to trailer detentions and box shut-outs, and delays in clearing import cargo leading to demurrages and detention charges.
The backlog exists from April 6 onwards, which is currently in the process of being cleared, it is learnt.
However, most of the initial technical hiccups with regard to filing of key documents in the new system have been cleared, according to feedback received by this paper. While the migration of the old data such as Bills of Entry and Shipping Bills to the 1.5 version went off smoothly, it was the filing of fresh data like IGMs, EGMs and CGMs in the new system that created problems in the initial few days.
"The data filed was not going through initially," says a CHA, "but now the issue with regard to IGMs and EGMs has been sorted out. We are hopeful of CGM filing too becoming glitch-free very soon."
It has to be said here that the Customs Department followed a meticulous and multi-pronged approach in the run-up to the migration to the upgraded version 1.5, with sufficient notices given to the trade, as it was incumbent on shipping agents, CHAs and other stakeholders to re-register with Customs under the new system and validate/verify their details like PAN No. etc. This was necessary and had to be thorough as the data was now to be part of a central server—and not local server as earlier—which, in turn, was connected to a wider network of servers, including the Income-Tax server.
The Department has appreciated the role of trade organisations like, for example, the Bombay Custom House Agents’ Association (BCHAA) for coordinating with its members in order to facilitate a smooth transfer to the new version.
However, in whichever location it has been implemented, there have been reports of interruptions and operational difficulties like messages not going through, delay in print-outs, registration issues, problems in data validation and verification etc.
Source : Exim News Service - NAVI MUMBAI, April 15