PESHAWAR; Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation organized a significant event at Azakhel, District Nowshera, where a massive quantity of confiscated goods was destroyed.
The ceremony witnessed the destruction of 130 metric tons of betel nuts, 686,690 packets of smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes from various brands, banned medicines, goods of Indian origin, banned items like Pan Parag (Gutka), shisha molasses, and expired goods.
Representatives from various law enforcement agencies, including Customs Enforcement Collectors, Chief Commissioner-IRS, District Police Officer (DPO), Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Nowshera, Judicial Magistrate of Nowshera, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Anti Narcotics Force (ANF), Intelligence Bureau (IB), Military Intelligence (MI), Frontier Corps (FC), Core Intelligence (CI), Javed Iqbal (Entomologist, Department of Plant Protection, Peshawar), President of Sarhad Chamber of Commerce, trade and business representatives, Pakistan Tobacco Company, Phillip Morris Pakistan Ltd, and numerous members from the print and electronic media, graced the occasion.
The Directorate highlighted that the destruction of confiscated goods is a regular practice once the cases reach the respective courts of law and the confiscation becomes final. Once declared ripe for auction or destruction, these goods are disposed of as per the court’s decision. This destruction ceremony was part of the Directorate’s ongoing efforts.
Under the leadership of Director General, Customs Intelligence, Faiz Ahmad Chadhar, the Directorate has intensified its anti-smuggling operations, resulting in warehouses being filled to capacity with confiscated goods. Consequently, the Directorate has expedited the auction and destruction processes. Customs Intelligence places special emphasis on combatting smuggling of goods that are harmful to health and society, such as drugs, narcotics, and cigarettes.
During the current financial year, the Directorate has confiscated goods worth Rs. two billion. In the past week alone, the Peshawar Directorate seized 200 kgs of Opium, 105 kgs of Hashish (Charas), and over one million sticks of various brands of cigarettes, which will be presented in the respective courts of law. Despite limited manpower and resources, Customs Intelligence remains committed to apprehending smugglers and combating the trafficking of banned goods that pose a threat to society.
