Port Nehru Truck Strike Cripples Cargo Movement

A strike by container truckers in India’s Port of Jawaharlal Nehru entered its third day on Thursday, crippling cargo movements to and from Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal, operated by DP World.

A shipping line agent at Nhava Sheva said the strike is likely to continue into the weekend after marathon negotiations between terminal officials and union representatives Wednesday failed to reach a settlement despite intervention by user associations.

“Both sides remained adamant on their respective stance, and no further conciliatory talks have been scheduled as of now,” the agent said.

By The Numbers: U.S. Container Trade With India.

A representative of the Mumbai-Nhava Sheva Ship Agents’ Association said containers had begun piling up at the private terminal with import deliveries to customers and local container freight stations seriously impacted. “Export arrivals into the terminal have also slowed considerably,” he said.

The Nhava Sheva Container Operators’ Association representing the local trucking community suspended operations Tuesday morning, complaining that persistent delays at the terminal were resulting in detention of vehicles for long hours.

The truck owner-operator group said the Dubai-based company managed to secure additional vessel calls through “volume-based” contracts with ocean carriers, creating a tight capacity situation with increased traffic volume.

NSICT is the second-largest container facility at Nehru, having handled 1.53 million 20-foot equivalent units in fiscal 2009-10 compared with 1.43 million TEUs a year earlier.