KOCHI: In a move that will give a new twist to the incident in which a consignment of suspected e-waste was seized at the Cochin Port, the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) on Saturday directed the Customs Department to send back the cargo within three months.
In a letter to the Customs and the Port, SPCB chairman K Sajeevan directed the agencies to take immediate steps to send back the consignment of multi-functional digital printers.
The order was issued on finding the importers had not obtained clearance certificate from the Central Pollution Control Board.
The printer/photocopier machines were shipped to Kochi in 80 containers, allegedly in violation of the Customs Act and the Hazardous Waste (Management) Rules. It is suspected they are actually e-waste dumped by various business establishments abroad.
The Department initiated a detailed inquiry into the incident after the initial probe revealed environmental clearance was not obtained and the mandatory pre-shipment inspection was not conducted.
The printers were imported from various countries, including the US and Germany, by a Kolkata-based company, the name of which has not been revealed yet. The imported machines contain poisonous elements like cadmium, selenium and iridium.
Earlier, the Kerala High Court had refused to intervene in the case, when approached by the Customs. The agency that imported the printers had offered to pay 10 per cent fine and five per cent penalty on the total value of the consignment.
Customs officials said the containers would be sent back after the investigation, which is expected to be completed within 30 days.
The authorities turned suspicious after the redundant multi-functional digital printers were imported in large numbers (around 25,000 in three years). Customs officers are of the view the machines are not brought for repair/resale, but are dumped here.
“Despite the Directorate General of Foreign Trade tightening the norms for import of printers/photocopiers last year, the Kochi and Kolkata ports continue to receive them,” said a customs official.