Customs dispose 40.86 lakhs sticks of Smuggled foreign origin Cigarettes, Cigars and Rolling Paper valued at Rs.3.89 Crores

40.86 lakh sticks of foreign-origin cigarettes were destroyed in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, by the Customs Commissionerate, Indore in the Bhopal Zone, as part of an operation against the illegal import of cigarettes and other contraband. Along with cigarettes, 2000 foreign-origin cigarettes and 557 foreign-origin rolling paper boxes that were being smuggled into India were destroyed.

The estimated value of cigarettes and other contrabands destroyed is about Rs.3.89 Crores. These goods were smuggled into India in contravention of the provisions of the Indian Customs Act, 1962.

In addition, the seized cigars and cigarettes did not meet the requirements set forth in “The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Rules, 2008” (as amended). The confiscated rolling papers, cigarettes, and cigars did not comply with the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules 2011, which were established in accordance with the Legal Metrology Act 2009.

Cigarettes, cigars, and rolling papers of foreign origin, including brands like Paris, Gudang Garam, Dunhill, and others, were found to have been smuggled into India through fraudulent declarations, in violation of the Customs Act, 1962.

It was also observed that the provisions of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 and the “Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply, and Distribution Act, 2003)” had been violated. The mandatory pictorial health warning that was required by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare notifications was absent from the confiscated packets of foreign-origin cigarettes. According to the COTPA Act of 2003, cigarette packs must include an obligatory health warning that occupies 85% of the package’s main display space, among other requirements.

Since these cigarettes are typically smuggled into the country without paying customs fees or GST, the consumer pays less for these smuggled cigarettes.

Smuggling syndicates frequently smuggle cigarettes and other tobacco products under the guise of cover cargo or by misrepresenting the goods as something else in order to evade paying duties and complying with regulations pertaining to the importation and sales of tobacco-related products.

With the help of officers of the Central CGST, Raipur, in front of independent witnesses, officers of the Customs ICD, Raipur, and DRI officials, the aforementioned count of seized goods were destroyed in accordance with prescribed guidelines because illegally smuggled cigarettes and other tobacco products are in violation of statutory guidelines and warnings.