Air cargo clearance delays at Chennai blamed on manpower shortages

AIR freight operations at the Chennai airport are expected to take more than a month to be brought back to normal because of a manpower shortage, according to clients and customs agents.


The Times of India reports that malfunctioning customs processing software combined with "administrative chaos" has created a cargo backlog since the last week of April.


"With the Airports Authority of India [AAI] and Bhadra International, who have been given the ground handling operations, bringing in some infrastructure improvements, the situation is looking up. However, clients and customs agents believe that the improvements are not enough to get the operations back to normal," the report said.


The 600 tonnes of air cargo that piled up in April has been cleared, however, it warns that a lack of coordination and insufficient manpower hinder efforts towards recovery. The report noted that a minimum of 200 is needed to move the cargo, but fewer than 100 employees are available.


Said an AAI official: "We are improving the system. Four forklifts and 10 trolleys have been made available for moving cargo. Lack of space inside the complex due to construction is making things difficult," he said.
(Source:http://www.schednet.com)