He was speaking after a press briefing on the first ever seizure of contraband cigarettes worth Rs 2.36 crore on Wednesday evening.
“Today, we were able to detect the contraband as we had a suspicion about the type of goods imported by a party from Dubai. Usually we follow a practice of opening the container and ascertaining the items. However, locating contraband inside the container is difficult as the container has a size of 20 feet. Unless one has suspicion, we don’t open the container till the end,” said Anpazhakan.
He continued, “We should now have the facility of a container scanner. The procurement of such a scanner is a costly affair, and thus, if we come across more such cases then definitely we will ask for the same as such facilities exist at other major ports in India.” Commenting on the seizure of cigarettes at Mormugao port on Wednesday evening, he said, “Our officers of the Appraising Section of Goa Customs were conducting a check of container No MEIU 0027509, which landed from Dubai. They detected 350 cartons of Dunhill and Djarum black brand cigarettes, which were cleverly concealed behind 100 cartons of disposable plates and glasses. The consignment was imported by M/S Seagull Ore Carrier Private Limited, a first-time importer. We got a suspicion as the importer, who is from Vasco, had declared the total weight of each carton in the container as 10 kilos. However, when we checked the total weight of each carton as well as the weight of items in the container, it was only 50 percent of what was declared by the importer. When we inquired with the importer, he claimed that it was a mistake. Also, we had a suspicion as the importer had chosen to import disposable plates and glasses from Dubai, and thus, we decided to conduct the search.” Meanwhile, a case has been registered under Section 110 of Customs Act.
