Global logistics leaders DHL and Fedex have partially resumed pick up of imported consignments from China, Hong Kong and Macau to India after temporarily suspending operations for about three weeks due to a lockjam created by delays in customs clearance, as revealed by their spokespersons.
“DHL Express India confirms it has partially resumed the pick-up of import shipments from mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau,” said a spokesperson.
However, DHL is restricting its pickup to only documents and not parcels, as she later adds.
“It is business as usual for the pick-ups of documents; however the pick-up of parcels still remain temporarily suspended due to an unusual backlog at clearance ports. We are maintaining a close watch and hope to resume regular operations as soon as possible,” she added.
On the other hand, Fedex is taking “high value shipments and documents” from the three locations, as revealed by their spokesperson.
“High value shipments and documents from China, Hong Kong and Macau into India are available. Due to backlogs beyond our control, service for low value (dutiable) shipments from these countries is temporarily not available,” said a spokesperson at Fedex.
In light of the ongoing conflict in the Galwan Valley between India and China, the two prominent freight leaders DHL and FedEx had temporarily suspended the picking up of shipments from China that were bound for India.
Union Minister for MSME, Nitin Gadkari had earlier commented that “Stopping imports from China will lead to losses for those who place orders prior the border clashes. Goods may take more than a month to arrive arrive in India and local businesses will suffer if goods remain stuck or are returned because they originated from China.”
Last month, Indian custom officials had begun physically examining Chinese consignments across ports and airports, with heightened border tensions between the two countries.
When it comes to the rules and regulations for shipping freight from China, national and international laws as well as individual carrier and carrier organization regulations all play a role in the definition and restriction process. There is no standardisation of customs requirements and procedures in China; the requirements vary from region to region and hence demands awareness of the exact protocols and guidelines.
Indian customs had started clearing shipments of Chinese origin on July 2 that had been jammed at ports for the past 10 days. Consignments started moving after several representations by multiple industry bodies to various ministries including finance, commerce and industry, chemicals and fertiliser and MSME as well as the Prime Minister’s Office.
