June 17, 2023 (MLN): Customs Intelligence has seized smuggled cigarettes worth Rs303 million in its countrywide operations during the last ten days, under the guidance of Chairman FBR, Mr. Asim Ahmad, a press release issued yesterday showed.
The largest catch has been made in Balochistan, where Customs Intelligence seized 4.2m sticks of foreign brands of cigarettes, valuing Rs114.2m.
In the province of Sindh, eight operations have resulted in the seizure of 1.42m sticks of high-end cigarette brands with a value of Rs69.7m.
Similarly, during intelligence-based operations in Punjab, the Customs Intelligence team seized 1.29m sticks of smuggled cigarettes valuing Rs75.3m.
Likewise, KP Customs Intelligence has seized 1.15m sticks of smuggled cigarettes worth Rs43.9m.
In all, during the last ten days, Customs Intelligence has seized a total of 8.15m sticks of smuggled cigarettes worth Rs303m.
This takes the tally of seizures of smuggled cigarettes by the Customs Intelligence in the current FY22-23 to 33.99m sticks with a total value of Rs1.324 billion.
The Chairman FBR, Mr. Asim Ahmad, and Director General, Customs Intelligence, Mr. Faiz Ahmad Chaudhary, lauded the efforts of Customs Intelligence Quetta, Karachi, Multan, Gwadar, Hyderabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Peshawar for taking timely actions against smuggling of illegal cigarettes.
They acknowledged that despite minimal human resources and logistics, Customs Intelligence is persistently making endeavors to eradicate the menace of smuggling in general and of smuggled cigarettes in particular.
