Hyderabad: DRI intercepts five consignments of unaccompanied baggage of African nationals

The officials of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Thursday intercepted five consignments of unaccompanied baggage of African nationals at Air Cargo complex of the Rajiv Gandhi International airport here.

The DRI said the goods were declared as edible foodstuff and weighed around 10 tonnes. The total value of the consignment declared to customs was around Rs 1.3 lakh.

On thorough inspection of baggage, DRI officers found a variety of items including noodles, cosmetics, palm oil, beef, dried fish, meat, beverages such as whiskey, beer, and gin in huge commercial quantity, which are otherwise not allowed to be imported as baggage as per Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 and Customs Act, 1962, DRI said in a statement.

"The statements of the claimants revealed that they were grossly undervaluing the goods to evade the customs duty and also using the unaccompanied baggage route to avoid regulatory permissions like FSSAI, Plant Quarantine, Animal Quarantine, State Excise, Legal metrology etc that are mandated for entry of goods into India," the statement mentioned.

The DRI said that it had earlier confiscated in the same way two consignments of commercial edible goods weighing more than three tonnes with similar modus operandi on July 22. The consignments valued at Rs 11 lakh were seized under the provisions of Customs Act, 1962.

Further investigation is underway.