Customs Deptt disposes of foreign-origin cigarettes, cigars, rolling papers worth Rs 3.89 cr

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Customs Department, under Ministry of Finance’s Department of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), disposed off 40.86 lakh sticks of smuggled foreign-origin cigarettes, cigars and rolling paper, worth Rs 3.89 crore in Raipur, here on Wednesday. The cigarettes were destroyed at a private furnace facility of Raipur – M/s Jayaswal Neco Industries in Siltara – authorised by District Industrial Centre (DIC), Chhattisgarh Environment and Pollution Control Board (CEPCB) and other monitoring agencies. In the past few years, the Government of India (Goi) has pushed in a concerted effort to curb cigarette smuggling as the foreign cigarettes are on an average 50 per cent cheaper in India and the market size is huge -- almost one third of the total cigarettes market. As part of a special drive against illegally imported foreign-origin cigarettes and contrabands, the a team of officials from Customs Commissionerate, Indore under Bhopal Zone, destroyed a massive of stock of 40.86 lakh sticks of smuggled foreign-origin cigarettes, by the way incinerating it at Raipur-based facility of an integrated steel plant’s furnace. Along with cigarettes, around 2,000 cigars and 557 quantities of rolling paper – both foreign-origin and smuggled – were also destroyed.

 

“The estimated market value of destroyed contrabands is Rs 3.89 crore, which were smuggled in India in contravention of the provisions of Indian Customs Act, 1962,” well-placed official sources informed. Sources further affirmed that the seized cigarettes, cigars also did not conform to the provisions/ conditions laid down under “The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Rules, 2008” (as amended) also. The seized Cigarettes, Cigars and Rolling Papers were also not compliant to the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules 2011 framed under Legal Metrology Act 2009. “The seized foreign origin cigarettes, cigars and rolling papers of various brands including Paris, Gudang Garam, Dunhill etc. were smuggled into India by resorting to mis-declaration in contravention of the provisions of Customs Act, 1962,” they added. According to the sources, the contravention of the terms and conditions of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 and “Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply, and Distribution Act, 2003 (COTPA, 2003) was also noticed. The seized Foreign Origin Cigarettes packets did not have mandatory pictorial health warning in compliance of Notifications issued from time to time by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. As per COTPA Act, 2003, the cigarette packets are required to have, inter-alia, mandatory health warning to cover 85 percent of the principal display area of the package.

 

As, illegally smuggled Cigarettes and other tobacco products are non compliant of statutory guidelines and warnings the said count of seized goods were disposed off by way of destruction as per prescribed guidelines with the assistance of officers of Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST), Raipur in presence of independent witnesses, officers of Customs ICD, Raipur and Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials. Knowledgeable sources in CGST and DRI revealed that there is demand of foreign origin cigarettes especially among young age consumers due to the myth that these foreign origin cigarettes are better one. “These smuggled cigarettes are cheaper for the consumer as these are usually smuggled into the country without payment of Customs duties and GST,” they added. Sources further informed that the smuggling of Cigarettes and other tobacco products are done to avoid the duty and the compliance with regulations related to the import/ sales of tobaccorelated products, the smuggling syndicates often indulge in smuggling of such items in guise of cover cargo or by mis-declaration of goods as some other items.