COIMBATORE: The customs department seized 200 cartons of imported cigarettes worth 6 lakh from a passenger who arrived at the Coimbatore airport on a flight from Sharjah on Sunday morning. This is the eighth case of smuggling of consumer goods reported at the airport this year.
The passenger, K Yusuf, 54, was travelling from Sharjah to Coimbatore on the Air Arabia flight 413, which landed at the Coimbatore airport at around 4am. “He (Yusuf) is a native of Ernakulam in Kerala. He was caught carrying 200 cartons of foreign branded cigarettes. Of these 100 cartons were Dunhill and 100 cartons were Davidoff,” assistant commissioner of customs Anantha Kalyana Krishnan.
As per the customs regulations in India, a traveler from abroad is allowed to bring 100 cigarettes from other countries. “Any quantity above 100 is subjected to 165% customs duty. If the cigarettes are for personal use, the passenger is allowed take them after paying the duty,” Krishnan said. “In case of commercial quantities, we have to check for warning as per Indian standards on the cigarette boxes. Most foreign brands do not have these warnings. So, we confiscate them,” said the officer.
There are two ways of clearing the confiscated cigarettes. The customs department will print the pictorial warning on the boxes as per Indian standards, and then auction it. “In case these cigarettes are not cleared within its shelf life, then we get it certified by the health department to be unfit for usage, and dispose them,” Anantha Kalayan Krishnan said.
In July this year, a passenger travelling from Sharjah was caught carrying 99 cartons of Dunhill cigarette worth 49,500. According to customs officials, people are trying to make Coimbatore an entry point for smuggling goods. “Airports like Trichy, Chennai and Kochi are crowded. So, some try to bring them through Coimbatore,” said a customs official requesting anonymity.
The customs department is facing acute shortage of staff, curtailing its strength of vigil on smugglers. “Every time there should be eight inspectors and five superintendents on duty. We are short of around 35% staff at the Coimbatore Airport,” the official said.
Passengers have also been found to use different tactics to hide goods in their luggage. “Small electronics and cigarettes are wrapped inside a blanket or plastic covers and hidden between clothes. Sometimes the scanner tends to miss these hidden commodities,” said another senior official of the customs department.
