Though the festival of lights ended on Friday, the Mumbai port has been seeing a high amount of firecrackers being smuggled almost every month.
Though the festival of lights ended on Friday, the Mumbai port has been seeing a high amount of firecrackers being smuggled almost every month. According to information provided by sources, the customs department’s preventive unit and Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in their operations seized firecrackers, lamps and lanterns worth Rs 32 crore within two months. While crackers worth approximately '20.53 crore were seized in June and August this year, there were, surprisingly, no big firecracker seizures in
November. “1,947 cartons of crockery and 9,386 cartons of firecrackers were seized. The total value of seized crockery is Rs 62,02,400 while the firecrackers are worth Rs 32 crore,” stated a customs officer.
The sources further informed The Asian Age that objects like ceramic glasses, chocolates, kitchen and water glasses, ceramic mugs are also illegally imported and exported and this year officials seized such goods, which are worth Rs 62 lakh,
from June until now. While six big cases were detected in June, during August, officials thwarted three major smuggling attempts.
While the petroleum ministry issued a circular, which laid strict prohibitions over the importing and exporting of firecrackers, almost 20 days ago, smugglers have been making several attempts to illegally import firecrackers.
According to a senior customs official, firecrackers worth Rs 8.35 crore in total were seized on June 1, 6 and 9. Officials got hold of firecrackers worth Rs 6 crore in total on June 11 and 12 while those worth Rs 6.18 core in total were seized on August 8 and 12.
In all the cases, the crackers came from China’s Ningbo and Shanghai port. “China has become a big market for smuggling through ports. As Chinese goods are attractive to look at and cheap they always attract the Indian customer,” commented A.K. Jyotishi, principal commissioner of the customs preventive unit.
According to a senior officer from the department, water and kitchen glasses, ceramic mugs and paper sky lanterns are items that often get seized at the Mumbai port. “These goods come from China, where they cost only Rs 100 but are sold in the Indian market for Rs 300 to 600. Generally, smugglers hide them under containers carrying cloth.
At the counters they are declared as something else and less duty is paid on them,” an officer commented, adding that mostly smugglers declare sky lanterns as paper kites. Since June this year, sky lanterns worth Rs 28.8 lakh, ceramic mugs worth Rs 4.92 lakh and kitchen glasses worth Rs 28,22,400 have been seized, an official said.
