| Subject: |
Ozone-depleting fridge gas new favourite of smugglers |
|
NEW DELHI: The customs department has alerted its offices at ports about smuggling of ozone-depleting substances as there has been a recent spurt in attempts to illegally ship R-22 gas, which is used in refrigerants and air-conditioners (ACs).
In discussions with top officials last month, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) flagged the gas along with gold, fake Indian currency notes, drugs and red sanders on which it will maintain a special focus this year as the department of revenue intelligence has spotted new ways of smuggling these items into the country, senior government officials told TOI.
While R-22 gas or chlorodifluoromethane is allowed to be imported, shipments are closely regulated and require a licence to be brought into the country.
But given the growing market for fridges and air-conditioners, the demand is higher than licensed supply.
In certain countries, use of the gas will be banned by next year, while manufacturers were barred from using them in products launched after 2004.
In a note to chief commissioners, the CBEC has said that in several cases, R-22 gas cylinders were found to be concealed in consignments where the importer had declared shipments of furniture, kitchen cabinets, photocopiers and even fruits, said senior customs officers.
The shipments were from China and Malaysia and the gas was sought to be smuggled through Mumbai, Chennai and Tuticorn ports. Although the officers said that front companies were being used to smuggle R-22, they did not have data related to the quantity of imports into the country. They, however, said that the scale was not as big as some of the other items, with cigarettes also put on the watch list.
Gold has retained its top slot on the Red Alert list for customs department given the government's decision to maintain 10% import duty as also other restrictions. During the last financial year, consignments worth close to Rs 700 crore were seized by customs and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, the note said. From concealing the precious metal in aircraft cavities, to putting them inside socks and knee caps and inside LCD television sets, smugglers have tried every trick to ship gold.
Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com
|