TIRUCHY: The availability of banned tobacco products at every nook and corner of Tamil Nadu has made people often wonder how such products were making their way into the State. On September 29, the Crime Prevention and Detection Squad of RPF under the Tiruchy division conducted a surprise inspection at the railway parcel office in Puducherry and busted an attempt to transport about 560 kg of banned tobacco products worth about Rs 10 lakh.
Following the seizure in Puducherry, RPF under Tiruchy division increased vigil and seized banned tobacco products left on coaches of trains mostly from Bhubaneswar and Howrah, among others. In October, RPF reported about six incidents in Tiruchy, where persons had abandoned banned tobacco products in railway coaches. Senior officials said the RPF is taking more steps to prevent the transportation of banned products through railways.
"Our team is conducting thorough inspection of trains, especially those from east and north, to prevent the transportation of banned products. Our Crime Intelligence Squad (CIS) and CPDS are conducting regular inspection on trains. We are also in touch with the Excise Department and other departments," said RPF's Senior Divisional Security Commissioner S Ramakrishnan. Sources said the seizure in Puducherry may be tip of the iceberg and it raised the need for inspection and thorough scanning of materials sent through the railway parcel service.
"Whenever you send a parcel through the railway, you have to give a declaration about the contents. In the case of Puducherry, the sender had given a false declaration. Therefore, we have registered a case and a detailed inquiry is going on in the matter. Apart from this, parcels coming from the eastern and northern States might not have been scanned to verify its contents. So, we are maintaining high alert at all stations," a source said.
With the railway resuming service of more trains and Deepavali round the corner, the CIS and CPDS are on high alert to ensure that tobacco smugglers do not take advantage of the festival rush.