All about Electronic Cargo Tracking System of Customs

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All about Electronic Cargo Tracking System of
Customs
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• Electronic Cargo Tracking System India has been
  working towards improving coordinated border
  management. Its open trade policies play a key
  role in sustaining the countrys development.
  However, the cross-border transit and management
  has been historically plagued by various issues
  such as delays due to congestion, logistics and
  infrastructure challenges, transit diversion,
  high administrative costs and poor information
  sharing between partner States.
• CBIC has been instrumental in adopting
  innovative technology solutions including the
  Electronic Cargo Tracking System (ECTS) to
  obliterate these bottlenecks and minimise
  barriers to trade in its neighbouring region.
  Introduction to ECTS technology through Circular
  No. 52/2017-Customs dated 22.12.2017 to
  facilitate movement of containerized cargo from
  Inland Container Depots (ICDs)/Container Freight
  Stations (CFS) to Bangladesh and Nepal provided
  significant dividends to both Trade and Customs
  controls.
• Additionally, Circular No. 42/2018-Customs dated
  02.11.2018 prescribed a procedure for a pilot on
  Transshipment of Export Cargo from Bangladesh to
  third countries through Land Customs Stations
  (LCSs) to Kolkata Port/ Airport, in containers or
  closed bodied trucks by adopting ECTS.

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• Furthermore, for enhanced facilitation of
  transportation of Nepal bound transit containers
  from Kolkata/ Haldia and Vishakhapatnam port,
  CBIC has notified the Transshipment of Cargo to
  Nepal under Electronic Cargo Tracking System
  Regulations, 2019 (as amended) to utilize ECTS
  system for securing and monitoring the
  traffic-in-transit.
• Under the improved mechanism, the need for
  Nepalese traders to seek permission and file
  transit declaration has been done away with.
  Recently, vide Circular No. 08/2022-Customs dated
  17.05.2022, ECTS has also been utilized for
  enabling exports from Bangladesh to India
  destined for clearance at hinterland ICDs.
• Furthermore, to augment multi-modal connectivity
  and leverage the bilaterally agreed inland
  waterways routes under the Protocol on Inland
  Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT) between India and
  Bangladesh, Circular No. 17/2022-Customs dated
  09.09.2022 and No. 19/2022-Customs dated
  14.09.2022 prescribe ECTS of containerized cargo
  transported using inland waterway routes from
  India to Bangladesh as well as transit of
  Bangladeshs exports to third countries.

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• On the domestic front too, CBIC has successfully
  launched an ECTS based pilot project backed by
  block chain technology for tracking movement of
  imported goods from Customs port to warehouse at
  ICD Tughlakabad. Phased roll out is
  underway.Advantages of Integrating ECTS with
  Customs Procedures
• (a) Bring state-of-art supply chain security in
  transport through real-time GPS tracking
• (b) Reduced waiting time for vehicles at Customs
  ports
• (c) Elimination of traffic congestion at the
  Customs stations/land borders
• (d) Substantial reduction in the transit time
• (e) Significant reduction in costs (transaction
  and administrative). (Updated as on November 2022
  Source- CBIC)
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