RailEnquiry

Amritsar : With the third seizure of heroin being made from a goods train carrying cement from Pakistan in the past less than two months, Indian importers today unanimously decided to stop cement import from the neighbouring nation via rail route, though its trade would continue through road.The cement importers made it clear that no cement consignment will arrive through train from across the border until foolproof security network with scanners were in place to curb the trend.All-India Cement Importers Association president MPS Chatha attributed their decision to the fact that any seizure of contraband resulted in unnecessary harassment for the importers. He said cement exporters in Pakistan were equally concerned about the issue."Pakistan traders stopped loading fresh stock of cement for export to India by rail immediately after the second seizure of heroin was made from a cement wagon a few days ago," he said. Chatha said 80 per cent of the cement that was imported from Pakistan via Attari arrived through train and the remaining 20 per cent through road. However, in view of their today's decision, a sizable chunk of cement import was likely to shift from rail to road route. "We can only import 40 truckloads of cement through road daily due to lack of infrastructure on both sides of the border whereas through rail route, the figure stood at 60 to 70 truckloads," he said.Chatha said their decision was likely to have a bearing on cement prices in the domestic market, which may go up in the coming days. "The ban will affect around five lakh families in Punjab, which are directly or indirectly associated with cement import from Pakistan," he said.The decision to stop cement import was taken at a meeting organised by the Confederation of International Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CICCI). The traders alleged that the latest seizure of heroin had brought to the fore the inadequacy of security apparatus. They said the government was charging Rs 28 as customs duty, Rs 12 as railway freight and Rs 32 as VAT on each bag of cement and, therefore, it was duty-bound to provide security at various levels.They urged the government to initiate urgent steps for installing scanners, beefing up security and patrolling with sniffer dogs to thwart any attempt to smuggle contraband, which could affect the cross-border trade.

Recent seizures from Pak train

JUNE 2: Customs authorities seize 5 kg of heroin. The consignment was hidden in a heap of 488 cement bags in a goods train from Pak.

JULY 16: Customs officials seize 7 kg of heroin from a wagon of goods train carrying cement from Pakistan. Hidden in cement bags, the consignment was found during unloading at a godown.

AUGUST 3: Officials of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seize 3 kg of heroin hidden in cement bags following a tip-off.

‘Upgrade security’

The cement traders have urged the Union Government to initiate steps for installing scanners, beefing up security and patrolling with sniffer dogs to thwart any attempt to smuggle contraband into India so that the cross-border trade was not hit. They claimed the government was charging them Rs 28 as customs duty, Rs 12 as railway freight and Rs 32 as VAT on each bag of cement and, therefore, it was duty-bound to provide security at all levels.