KOCHI: Even the most ingenious methods tried out by the gold smugglers to bring in the yellow metal have fallen flat in the face of the alertness shown by the Cochin Customs - covering the airport, seaport and Special Economic Zone - who managed to seize 87 kg of gold in the 2017-2018 financial year(FY).
The number of gold smuggling cases in 2017-2018 financial year equalled those witnessed during the 2016-2017 fiscal, Customs sleuths said. Customs Commissioner Sumit Kumar said the gold seized by the Customs in the 2017-2018 FY is valued at `26.97 crore and 254 cases were registered in this connection. Also, `2.3 crore was collected by way of duty, `19 lakh as fine and `6.21 lakh as penalty for the seized gold. As many 15,125 flights and 23,91, 493 passengers were checked and cleared.
Apart from it, `24.32 crore was paid as duty for other goods, with the fine and penalty imposed coming to `19. 7 lakh and `17.23 lakh, respectively. “ Despite being severely understaffed, officers toiled round-the- clock which enabled us to thwart the plans of the smuggling syndicates. The quantity of gold seized in the last fiscal was almost equal to that impounded in the previous fiscal. However, we could intercept more smugglers,” he said. According to the Customs Commissioner, the spurt in the number of gold smuggling incidents at the Thiruvananthapuram and the Calicut Airport has sparked concern.
In the last two months, 25 kg of gold was seized from the Calicut Airport, with 17 kg of gold being netted in Thiruvananthapuram. “ We have very few personnel at the Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram Airport. Hence, more hands have been sought. Once the Kannur International Airport Ltd(KIAL) becomes operational the manpower shortage will hopefully be addressed,” he said.
The Customs Department is seeking the public’s cooperation to bring the smugglers and their financiers to book. In gold seizure cases the reward is 20-30 per cent of the market price of the seized gold. “We have already exhausted the reward amount for gold seizure last year. The information from the public and people associated with airports and international checkpoints are crucial for us,” he said.
To snuff out the gold smuggling syndicates, the department is imparting training to CISF personnel, airport authorities, in-flight caterers, cabin crew and other ground staff on the smugglers’ modus operandi. Similarly, efforts are being undertaken to familiarise them with the provisions of the Customs Act .