Hyderabad DRI officials seize illegal areca nuts

Hyderabad: The zonal unit of Hyderabad DRI seized illegally imported areca nuts weighing 113 metric tons (mt) from Krishnapatnam port worth Rs 3.25 crore.

According to an official release from the department it's noted that, the DRI was tipped off about the import of areca nuts into the country, by concealing in copra expeller cake. Upon receiving the information, officers in Vijayawada and Nellore visited the port and verified the imports which were made by two importers between May 10 and 12.

After confirmation about the imports, the officials from Hyderabad made their way to the port and a detailed investigation began, which further revealed that the importers declared 156 mt of 'coconut expeller cake' for import into the country. However, the coconut expeller cake was only 43 mt as declared in the cargo logs. While the remaining 113 mt was actually 90/95 grade areca nut of Indonesian origin, on which the customs duty would have been Rs 3.25 crore and the entire operation of smuggling the areca nut was done to evade the customs duty because if it were imported legally, then the nuts attract 100 % customs duty.

The officials further noted that, the coconut expeller cake was just a cover to hide the real crime and the masterminds of such crime were traced down to Kerala. The DRI officials in Kerala have been notified about it and the investigation is underway.