KARACHI: Severe violations of green channel’s SOPs have been observed at all the three Collectorates of Karachi including Customs Appraisement East, Appraisement West and Port Qasim in terms of import as the GDs of scrap of plastic, iron and steel with other miscellaneous items have been processed and cleared through green channel. Violations are causing huge lose to government exchequer as the tax evaders are using the facility for their evil purpose.
Customs Today has learnt through an inquiry officer that a case surfaced last week that a steel company namely M/s KM Steel tried to import 25 consignments of iron scrap through green channel and evaded the duties and taxes worth over Rs24 million.
Inquiry officer further told that there is a ban like situation in the SOPs of green channel that no items that are not in framed packing would be cleared from green channel like iron, plastic and other shapes of scrap which is very difficult to examine without physical scrutiny.
Normally items like fabrics, medicine, similar electronic items and other such items which are being imported in framed packing are cleared through green channel while the miscellaneous items and scraps banned to be cleared from this channel. But, this illegal practice is carried out and no action has been taken so far.
It is pertinent to mention that the officials of Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation (I&I) had sent the findings of a report to the relevant Collectorates that this violations must be stopped because it was causing huge loss to the government revenue.
