First shipment under TIR Convention reaches India from Afghanistan via Iran’s Chabahar Port

New Delhi [India], Mar 13 (ANI): The first shipment from Afghanistan under the TIR Convention through Iran’s Chabahar Port arrived at India’s Nhava Sheva port in Mumbai and Mundra port in Gujarat on Monday.
The TIR (Transports Internationaux Routiers) is a United Nations Convention that allows goods to be sealed in compartments and requires no need for physical checking of the contents, enabling shipments to pass through countries without being opened at borders.
Welcoming the arrival of the maiden shipment, Pranab Kumar Das, chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC), Ministry of Finance, said, “The TIR convention will help in fast and easy movement of goods across multiple countries under a common customs document and guarantee.”
“Reciprocal recognition of customs controls is at the heart of the Convention. This enables a facilitative and non-intrusive environment for multi-modal transport of goods through several countries," he said.
"The convention will help in boosting India’s exports and enable greater participation in the global value chains. We will leverage technology to make the movement more secure and facilitative. I urge our exporters to use this facilitative system to make our exports more competitive,” Das added.
Secretary-General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) Dilip Chenoy said: “TIR will play a pivotal role in improving ease of doing business and pave the way for a smoother and safer transport of goods across international borders and will help boost trade between India, Central Asia, Europe, and Russia."
"It will act as a strong catalyst for moving goods using the multi-modal transportation route like Chabahar and International North-South Transport (INSTC) Corridor. The system is a win-win-win model for Customs, FICCI, and the business community.”
India joined the TIR Convention (the United Nations Customs Convention on International Transport of Goods under cover of TIR Carnets) on June 15, 2017. 
Secretary-General of International Road Transport Union (IRU), Umberto Pretto said, “The opening of Chabahar Port for TIR is hugely significant – offering connectivity for landlocked countries, seamless border crossing facilitation and intermodal capabilities."
"It also highlights how TIR has been chosen by these three countries as a key tool to help activate the Chabahar transport agreement. The operation will definitely open the door for activation of other intermodal corridors such as International North-South Transport Corridor–connecting India to Central Asia, Russia and eventually Europe,” said Pretto. (ANI)