Rs 5.7 cr red sanders seized at Chennai port by customs
CHENNAI: Chennai Customs Zone on Saturday seized a major consignment of 7. 4 metric tonne red sanders worth Rs 5.7 crore that were to be smuggled to Taiwan and China.
A press release from the Chennai customs said that based on a specific intelligence about smuggling of Red Sanders to South East Asian countries a special intelligence investigation team (SIIB) was formed.
The SIIB was working on various sources of intelligence and conducting surveillance day and night, over the entire Chennai Seaport area, Container Freight Stations (CFSs) and around the places for over a week. On the basis of risk parameters various export consignments were also subjected to container scanning to identify the smuggling of Red sanders.
A few containers destined to South East Asian countries including Taiwan from Chennai port were targeted for detailed inspection by SIIB. Simultaneously persistent surveillance in CFSs where the export consignments in loose packets were being stuffed were also checked by Customs SIIB officers. When a specific suspicious container having export cargo to Taiwan was found with unusual goods and detained at the port for through verification, another Customs team zeroed down to few export packages meant for stuffing in one of the CFS kept in a suspicious manner, the release said.
The suspect container was found to have been meticulously filled with small pavement granite stones so as to camouflage the contraband Red Sanders.The entire quantity of smuggled Red Sanders, cover goods, incriminating documents, involved in the illegal export were seized under the Customs Act, 1962; and Wild Life Protection Act, 1972, Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. Further investigation is on and the Customs are on the search for suspect persons involved in the smuggling operation for taking further action on them, for the illegal act of smuggling, the release said.