Customs officers should be alert towards the smuggling of drugs, which affects the future generations, and smuggling of gold , which hurts the economy, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said asking them to bring such cases to logical conclusions and to be ready for newer technological challenges.
The minister was addressing an event in Delhi on Tuesday to celebrate the completion of 60 years of Customs Act, 1962.
“If gold (smuggling) hurts economy, drugs will hurt generations… Be on high alert in case of drug seizures and ensure time-bound prosecution. We need to bring logical conclusion in each case,” Sitharaman said.
The Customs department, she added, needs to use a cocktail of technology tools, like dark net, artificial intelligence, web3 and metaverse. She said the officers should act as leaders to show the world how they have been able to overcome modern and newer challenges.
The minister asked the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) to chart out plans for the next 25 years on how to scale up enforcement and also give ideas which the world can follow.
Speaking at the same event, minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary highlighted the role played by Turant Customs which is faceless, paperless and contactless, in the facilitation of trade. He hoped that “the Customs officers would be in a position to check the smuggling and leakage of revenue harnessing the rapid advancement in technology.”
Chairman, CBIC, Vivek Johri said, “Indian Customs has re-engineered and automated various business processes.” “The Indian Customs has been able to manage all three tiers with aplomb that is revenue collection, border control and trade facilitation. The electronic clearance process has helped in expeditious clearance with effective enforcement,” he said.
He expressed faith that Customs Act will enable officers to deal with future challenges of trade-based money laundering, e-commerce, 3D printing, cryptocurrency etc.
