Mumbai (Maharashtra): In a view to give a befitting reply to China on its stand over border issues, India has suspended the Customs clearance of Chinese containers at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) port near Mumbai after conducting a digital surgical strike by banning 59 Chinese apps across the nation.
However, goods from nations entering the JNPT or Nhava Sheva port are being cleared by the Customs department.
In the wake of the ongoing border dispute with China, the Central government has adopted the strict measure to attack the economy of the neighbouring nation as delaying the custom clearance would directly cause financial loss to the companies.
JNPT currently employs more than 2,000 custom house clearing agencies. Each clearing agency has received at least 10 containers from China for custom clearing. These clearing agencies have agreements with other companies as well. Accordingly, the goods in the container arriving from the ship at JNPT port are taken out within two to three days after clearing all custom operations.
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In an exclusive interaction with ETV Bharat Customs clearing agent Vijay Warpe said, "In the current scenario, the Customs Department has not yet provided a timeline for custom clearing of pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, chemicals, fertilizers and electronics goods from China. This will cause a financial loss."
"Jawaharlal Nehru Port handles 55 per cent of the container shipments to India by sea from the trust. It handles more than 40 lakh containers each year. Considering the ongoing Coronavirus crisis, it has also affected the custom manpower at JNPT to some extent. Presently, the manpower in the JNPT customs department is being kept at 50 per cent each day. Noting, duty payment, and passing in the customs clearing are being done with the available manpower," said Jigar Kothari, another Customs clearing agent.
In India, ports like Cochin, Chennai, and Mumbai receive large quantities of goods from foreign nations through containers. Of the three ports, JNPT at Nhava Sheva near Mumbai handles most of the containers. However, even after paying the Customs Tax on containers imported from abroad, there is a delay in customs clearing. As a result, the traders involved in this sector are suffering equal financial loss.
Meanwhile, officials stated that the detailed information about the postponement in the customs clearance of containers coming from China will be provided only by Delhi headquarters.
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