ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Customs has seized smuggled goods worth Rs3.8 billion in the month of July this year as against Rs1.56bn worth goods apprehended in the same period in 2019.

In an official statement issued on Thursday, Pakistan Customs said that an impressive growth of 143 per cent was recorded in seizures of smuggled goods across the country.

The goods seized included gutka, betel nut, skim-med milk, cigarettes, Iranian diesel, tyres, non-duty paid vehicles, narcotics, cloth, gold, and foreign currency.

Pakistan Customs is making all-out efforts to protect the economic frontiers of Pakistan and protect local industry, the statement said.

The government has extended anti-smuggling powers to Police, Frontier Corps, Pakistan Rangers and the Maritime Security Agency and has launched a country-wide operation against transportation, storage, and sale of smuggled goods.

Raids are being conducted on dumping places used for storage of smuggled items and intelligence-based operations are being conducted in all major cities including Quetta, Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore, and Multan to root out the network of smugglers, the statement added.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2020