Customs
at the Delhi airport, on Wednesday night, seized multiple shipments containing over
500,000 masks, 950 bottles of sanitiser and 952 Personal
Protection Equipment (PPE) kits that were set to be illegally exported to the United
States of America, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates and China.
Senior
officers said the consignments were misdeclared as fabrics
and plastic raw material, to avoid suspicion. An investigation has revealed that
these goods were sourced from traders in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab.
According
to senior customs officials, as per the guidelines of Directorate General of Foreign
Trade (DGFT), these goods are, at present, prohibited for export because of the
ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
“Late
Wednesday evening, following a tip-off, we checked an identified consignment scheduled
to be sent to China and found 5.08 lakh (508,000) face masks packed in it. The packet
had been misdeclared as plastic pouches. Following another
tip, when we checked a series of parcels in the courier section of the Delhi airport’s
cargo area, we found other parcels that had been declared as fabrics too. When opened,
950 bottles of sanitisers, containing 57 litres in all, and 952 PPE kits were recovered. These were scheduled
to depart for the USA, UK and UAE,” said a senior customs official, who wished not
to be named.
The officer
said further investigation is underway to track the source of these consignments.
“Our information suggests that these items were sourced from traders and dealers
in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab,” the officer said.
Indian is currently going through a prolonged
period of nationwide lockdown. However, the government has allowed the operations
of cargo and courier.