Peshawar Collector Qurban Ali says 13 new check posts have been set up at different places on the Pak-Afghan border to curb smuggling of goods from Afghanistan into Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Peshawar Customs Collector Qurban Ali has said that the entire clearance system at Torkham border has been shifted from One Customs to Web Based One Customs (WeBOC), which is expected to increase the revenue by more than 300 percent, while steps are being taken to completely eliminate the menace of smuggling.
Talking to Customs Today during an exclusive interview in Islamabad, Collector Qurban Ali said that only two items – raw cotton and coal – used to be cleared through WeBOC at the Torkham border.
“Following the launch of a fresh countrywide anti-smuggling campaign on the directives of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Nisar Muhammad Khan, the Peshawar Customs took steps that resulted in a 40 percent cut in smuggling of cloth, electronic appliances and other goods from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, especially Peshawar, to Punjab and other parts of the country.”
He said that as many as 13 new check posts have been set up at different places on the Pak-Afghan border to curb smuggling of goods from Afghanistan into Pakistan.
He said that the incumbent team of the FBR is a good one. “The FBR chairman and his team are bent upon doing maximum good for the country during their time in office.”
He expressed hope that the Peshawar Customs will easily achieve the revenue collection targets set for the current fiscal year.
To a question, Qurban Ali said that construction of infrastructure at the Torkham border will start this year under an agreement signed with the Asian Development Bank.
“To this end, talks are underway with the locals of the area for the accusation of 800 kanals – the land required for construction of this infrastructure. It is the most challenging phase of the project because convincing the locals to sell off their land is a difficult task.” However, he said that there have been some breakthroughs. “We are trying to make them understand that this project will not only be beneficial for their businesses but will also result in development of the area. For how long will they rely on smuggling? We told them that the government is taking stern action against smugglers, and in the days to come, smuggling will be impossible… so it is better for them to keep their focus on legal trade,” he said.
He said that the locals now understand the situation and hopefully the work on infrastructure will begin in time. Collector Qurban Ali said that the Asian Development Bank had awarded the contract for construction of infrastructure through an international tender, so the company that secured the tender will be the one to start the construction work. “The plan includes construction of a warehouse,” he said.
Qurban Ali said that many traders have opted for illegal trade, i.e. smuggling, mainly because of lack of facilities at the Torkham border. This, he said, results in loss of revenue for the country. “I have now convinced them to keep this ‘shortcut’ at bay and engage only in legal trade.”
The Peshawar collector said that the strategy to set up new check posts in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has yielded good results, while other law enforcement agencies are also helping the Customs Department in curbing smuggling in the area. In this regard, the role of Frontier Constabulary (FC) in the Pak-Afghan border areas and that of police in cities is laudable, he said.
He said that FBR Chairman Nisar Muhammad Khan has issued stern directives to the chief collectors and collectors to vigorously continue the anti-smuggling operations in their respective areas. The chairman also directed the collectorates to coordinate and share information with each other in this regard. “Under this strategy, we are achieving long-lasting results against illegal trade, and now this campaign against smuggling is permanent,” he concluded.
