Customs department asked to dispose of hazardous goods after Beirut blasts

Revenue department sends letter after report last week 740 tonnes of ammonium nitrate was lying in storage near Chennai.

The Customs department must ensure "hazardous, explosive" goods lying in stores are disposed of safely, the revenue department has said after a devastating explosion on Friday killed more than a 100 people in Lebanon's capital Beirut.

The department started a safety campaign Tuesday to dispose of "un-claimed/un-cleared/seized/confiscated goods" by August l. It was launched after reports last week that 740 tonnes of ammonium nitrate—the explosive material in the Beirut blasts--were stored in a Container Freight Station (CFS) near Chennai. Customs seized the material in 2015 after the company importing it failed to show a licence. 

A letter signed by Kevin