PESHAWAR: The Directorate of Anti-Smuggling Unit, Customs House Peshawar, has confiscated Non-Duty-Paid goods worth Rs610million during the past three months.
Knowing that the Model Customs Collectorate Peshawar lacks modern technology and trained officers, Pakistan Custom’s Directorate of Anti-Smuggling Unit Peshawar Deputy Collector Obaid Ullah Khan is committed to eliminating the menace of smuggling in the region.
This was stated by Deputy Collector Obaid Ullah Khan while giving an exclusive interview to Customs Today.
He said that the seizure of NDP items has increased in the current Financial Year 2017-18 and, during last three months, customs impounded items valued at Rs610million while they were worth Rs346million during three months of previous FY 2016-17.
Talking to Custom Today, DC Obaid Ullah said that the Customs Department is trying to double the revenues in upcoming months of current fiscal year in order to earn extra revenue for the customs exchequer for which Customs House Peshawar is working hard under the leadership of Collector Customs Muhammad Saeed Jadoon.
During the past three months, the custom police took into possession 3300kg of narcotics, 17 non-custom-paid vehicles, tons of black tea, cloths, tyres and other goods priced at Rs610million.
“The Customs Department has reformed the workforce to make it efficient while a special Ant-Smuggling Unit was established to check the menace of smuggling. The level of coordination with other law enforcement departments has been enhanced to secure the borders with Afghanistan,” he added.
The Customs Department also arranged meetings with other law enforcement agencies to make the region smuggling-free, he said. The infrastructure of the department is also being developed in order to facilitate trade, DC Obaid Ullah Khan further said.
The custom police need to be further facilitated and latest tools must be introduced that could enhance the performance of the department. The Deputy Collector further said that the custom police should be facilitated to conduct the Anti-Smuggling Units in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). In this regard, we have started meeting with the authorities concerned to enhance the power of custom police to end smuggling.
Deputy Collector Obaid Ullah added that a system has been introduced to give rewards to informers for passing information about the smuggling attempts done. The DC vowed that corrupt officers will not be tolerated in the department.
