MULTAN: Directorate General of Afghan Transit has requested Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to revisit the prescribed routes for transit trade for effective working of mobile enforcement units (MEUs) and regional control rooms (RCRs).
The Federal Board of Revenue Member (Customs – Operations Dr. Jawwad Awais Agha’s attention was drawn by Directorate General of Afghan Transit Trade that the transit trade routes prescribed for movement of transit cargo as appearing in Customs Rules, 2011 were notified vide SRO 601(I)/2011 and SRO 121(I)/2014 are meant for use of Afghan vehicles under TAD scheme and that did not cover bonded carriers (carrying transit goods) registered in Pakistan.
Amendment was proposed in the rules as well as in the rules specifying the routes to clarify the fact that the prescribed routes for transit were meant for bonded carriers registered in Pakistan as well as transport operators under TAD scheme from Afghanistan.
It was also mentioned in Afghan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA) 2010 that specified designated routes for traffic in transit from both Pakistan and Afghanistan will be notified under customs rules, which will convey impression that said routes are only meant for TAD scheme.
The Federal Board of Revenue has been informed that no route has been prescribed for movement of reverse transit cargo from Chamman to Wagha, both in APTTA-2010 as well as Customs Rules 2001.
However the routes commonly followed by the bounded carriers since the past many years for traffic in transit from Chamman to Wagha includes Chamman ,Kuchlak, Kanozai, Muslim Bagh, Qila Saifullah, Loralai, Rakhni, Fort Monroe, Sakhi Sarwar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarh, Multan, Khanewal, Mian Channu, Chichawatni, Sahiwal, Okara, Patoki, Manga Mandi, Lahore and Wagha.
Therefore said routes needs to be immediately notified for reverse transit from Chamman to Wagha through an amendment in the Customs rules 2001.
The legal framework has been discussed under Rule 489-F that transport operator shall adopt one of the prescribed routes notified by the Federal Board of Revenue in consultation with Ministry of Communication for transportation of transit goods from office of departure to office en-route. According to rule 630 transport operator for specified routes for movement of transit cargo shall adopt one of the designated routes with Ministry of Communication for transportation of transit goods from office of departure to office en-route.
Directorate General of Transit Trade has requested to Ministry of Communication on board before notifying said routes Afghan Transit Trade in order to avoid any litigation and to ensure security of cargo en-route.
It was also emphasized that Mobile Enforcement Units (MEU,s) reporting to the Regional Control Rooms of MCC –Quetta, MCC Multan, MCC Faisalabad and MCC Lahore needs effective route monitoring due to non-deployment of MEU,s from Chamman to Wagha.
Therefore Federal Board of Revenue was requested to notified for establishment of Regional Control Rooms at respective MCCs in routes and establishment of Regional Control Room and Mobile Enforcement Units also needs to be revisited for effective monitoring of Transit cargo (forward/reverse) from both Chamman and Torkham stations.
Chief Collector Zeba Hai Azhar has also directed MCC Preventive Multan to compile report regarding the effective working of Mobile Enforcement Units and Regional Control rooms for tracking & monitoring of Afghan cargo under prescribed routes.
