PESHAWAR: President Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry has strongly condemned the imports of betel nuts through illegal channels to Pakistan and said that hazardous goods must be scrutinized before clearance.
The SCCI President while talking to Customs Today on Friday said that the clearance of contraband items from green and yellow channels have increased the worries of importers.
Zahid Shinwari assured the genuine importers of taking up the issue with the high-ups of the Customs Department in the next meeting. Such activities hamper the development of economics and trade, he maintained.
Zahid Shinwari said that the importers involved in the import of betel nuts must be punished in order to discourage the trade of contraband items through legal passages and channels.
Shinwari added that the Customs Department needs to consider the mindset of genuine importers as clearance of illegal consignments through green and yellow channels can bring their investments down for which the government does need to take bold steps, he stressed.
As betel nuts are injurious to health so the government must adopt safe precautions to prevent the import of betel nuts through safe channels, Zahid Shinwari added.
