LAHORE: Collector (Preventive) Zulfiqar Younis has said that the Anti-Smuggling Operation Management System (ASOMS) would control manipulation of smuggling detection record as well as help the Customs Department’s high-ups to monitor the location and official activities of the field staff.
While talking to the state-owned news agency, the collector said that the ASOMS, developed by the Customs Department in collaboration with the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), was adopted in the collectorate operational system on test-run basis, to control smuggling and related activities speedily and effectively.
The collector said that the software would help remove ambiguities and generate computerised ‘Detention Memos’ and ‘Seizure Reports’ which were earlier being written manually by the detecting officials.
“Definitely, computerization of Customs Department will amply improve its operations, and secondly, the importance and work-load of Customs operations will increase manifolds with the fast completion of projects under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor,” he maintained.
The collector (Preventive) said it had also been decided to change the Customs staffers at airports after every four months to avoid monotony and give relaxation time to officials performing hectic duty of public dealing. This would also improve the overall working and operation of the Customs Department, he maintained.
Regarding behavioural change in the Customs officials performing duties at public places especially airports and ports, he said that Model Customs Collectorate had also hired services of Soft Skill Expert, Prof Syed Qasim Ali Shah, who was holding sessions for bringing a positive change in the officials behaviour, while a retired senior officer of Customs (Preventive) Muhammad Shehbaz was focusing on professional capacity building of the officials.
To a question, Zulfiqar Younis said he had had successful meeting with officers of Punjab Forensic Science Laboratory, who offered to conduct forensic test of the mobile-phone and laptop data of smugglers. “Of course, we will send the smugglers cellular phones and laptops to the forensic laboratory for unlocking of their passwords and detailed analysis their data,” he maintained.
