ISLAMABAD: Customs Collector Seema Raza Bokhari said that the Collectorate is following speedy clearances to encourage legal businesses, subsequently adopting all possible measures to discourage smuggling activities within its jurisdiction.
Talking with Customs Today during an exclusive interview, Seema Raza Bokhari said that she has instructed her staff to maintain the surplus current revenue and anti-smuggling performance throughout the financial year 2019-20, adding that to facilitate the exporters the Customs Islamabad exports department is working round the clock, whereas process has been restructured to dispose of export related rebate cases in speedy way.
Answering a query related with the NIIA (new Islamabad international airport) the Collector responded that despite facing shortage of staff the Collectorate is taking all measures to curb currency smuggling through international airport, adding that under the FATF (financial action task force) directives the MCC Islamabad ensured all the passengers travelling via NIIA to declare their currency through Customs Currency declaration center.
Telling the performance for the month of December, Seema Bokhari said that the MCC showed extraordinary revenue collection performance during the month, adding that during month of December 2019 the Collectorate earned Rs173.79 million extra revenue under all heads against allocated revenue target for the month while it grabbed Rs833 million additional revenue under all heads against same corresponding period.
She said that the MCC Islamabad was assigned Rs1028 million under head of (CD) Customs Duty against revenue collection of Rs1153.26 million. The Collectorate received Rs125 million extra revenue against assigned collection target under head of the CD for month of December 2019.
Providing anti-smuggling performance during July to December 2019, the Collector informed that ASO made huge difference while registering cases worth Rs1268 million against goods and NDP vehicles during July to December 2019-20 whereas the ASO registered Rs 306 millions of worth cases during same period of 2018-19.
The ASO registered smuggled goods cases worth Rs635 million, offending vehicles worth Rs138 million and NDP vehicles worth Rs494 million during July to December 2019-20 whereas the ASO seized smuggled goods worth Rs 133 million, offending vehicles worth Rs34 million and NDP vehicles worth Rs137 million during July to December 2018-19. The above anti-smuggling performance is evident that ASO Islamabad inserted Rs962 million additional revenue into the national exchequer during first half of current financial year against same corresponding period of the last year, the Collector concluded.
