Made-in-China crackers worth Rs 7.2 crore seized at JNPT port

MUMBAI: A consignment of illegal Chinese firecrackers worth Rs7.2 crore was seized by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Mumbai Zonal Unit, at Jawaharlal Nehru

MUMBAI: A consignment of illegal Chinese firecrackers worth Rs7.2 crore was seized by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Mumbai Zonal Unit, at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Nhava Sheva. The Indian government had banned Chinese crackers in 2014.

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This comes at a time when the demand for firecrackers is about to increase within a couple of months due to Diwali.

Authorities were uncertain about the source of the consignment.

“Four containers of the illegal cargo were being smuggled into India via sea route. The shipment is valued at Rs7.2 crore,” said an officer requesting anonymity.

The crackers were found concealed inside parcels with fake names and addresses. The official said parcels also contained ‘adhesive tapes’ and ‘badminton rackets’ to hoodwink authorities.

The officer said, “Firecrackers are prohibited for import under the Foreign Trade Policy, 2015-2020. They fall under the category of restricted goods and can be exported or imported only in accordance with permission or a public notice issued in this regard.”

Moreover, as per rules 7 and 10 (2) of the Explosive Rules, 2008, read with section 5 of the Explosives Act 1884, firecrackers can be imported only after a licence is issued by the chief controller of explosives.

“In this case of the seized firecrackers, no one came forward with a licence to claim the goods and these were clandestinely imported by declaring them as ‘adhesive tapes’ and ‘badminton rackets’,” said the officer.

The Made-in -China fireworks were also banned by the Indian government in 2014, as they are deemed dangerous. Most of these imported crackers are friction-sensitive and could easily explode if dropped.

This led to a countrywide alert to prevent such products from being smuggled into the country.

Around two years ago, the Union ministry of home affairs had also issued an advisory to all chief secretaries of states, cautioning them about the illegal smuggling of Chinese firecrackers.

These firecrackers often contain high doses of potassium chloride and the banned potassium chlorate, which can lead to fire incidents, added the customs officer.