KARACHI: Pakistan Customs has seized smugged/non-duty paid goods worth Rs2.5 billion in a series of anti-smuggling operations conducted across the country. An official statement released on Friday provided details of these operations and the seized goods.
The seized essential commodities, including sugar and urea, are commonly smuggled out of Pakistan, while goods such as petroleum, oil, and lubricants (POL) are illegally smuggled into Pakistan through less-traveled routes along the border areas shared with Afghanistan and Iran. These illicitly transported goods are then further distributed via trucks and, in some instances, smaller quantities in passenger vehicles to major urban centers.
Recognizing this ongoing issue, Pakistan Customs has significantly intensified its counter-smuggling efforts and initiated crackdowns on various types of smuggled goods, with a particular focus on essential commodities, POL products, currency, and other items.
Over the past two weeks, Pakistan Customs successfully seized significant quantities of essential commodities valued at approximately Rs 2.25 billion in various operations carried out in regions including Quetta, Dera Ismail Khan (D.I. Khan), Multan, Karachi, Sargodha, and Lahore.
The seized essential commodities encompassed a range of items, such as sugar, urea, POL products, Pakistani currency, as well as items like tires, black tea, betel nuts, vehicles, iron, steel, and other goods.
One of the notable seizures occurred in the Balochistan region on September 2, 2023, when Customs Enforcement-Quetta confiscated a massive 1,637 tons of sugar worth approximately Rs. 1.0 billion from smugglers traveling in a convoy of 15 trucks. This was followed by a substantial seizure of smuggled goods and vehicles, valued at Rs. 519 million, on Daraban-Darazinda Road in D.I. Khan on September 3, 2023, conducted in collaboration with local law enforcement. Additionally, Customs Enforcement-D.I. Khan seized approximately 218,000 liters of smuggled POL/diesel, with an estimated value of around Rs. 137.6 million during the last week.
In Karachi, Customs Enforcement disrupted the flow of smuggled POL products by seizing 115,000 liters of Iranian-origin diesel and 30,000 liters of petrol.
Furthermore, Pakistan Customs has issued strict instructions to its anti-smuggling formations, including mobile squads operating in collectorates and airports, to closely monitor and prevent the illicit movement of essential goods, commodities, Iranian POL, and currency.
Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Malik Amjed Zubair Tiwana, and Member Customs (Operations), Ms. Zeba Hai Azhar, commended Pakistan Customs for its prompt actions in curbing the smuggling of essential goods. Pakistan Customs remains committed to eradicating the issue of smuggling and will continue to intensify its anti-smuggling operations throughout the country.
