KOCHI: Customs officials at the Cochin international airport on Tuesday morning seized foreign currencies worth Rs 67.05 lakh from a Thrissur native who was bound for Dubai by an Emirates flight and tried to smuggle it in the false cavities of the check-in baggage. He was booked under provisions of the Customs Act, 1962, read with Foreign Exchange Management Regulations Act 1999.
Customs officials said there is a suspected increase in the bid to smuggle out foreign currency in recent times especially to destinations like Dubai, Sri Lanka and Malaysia which is revealed with the seizure of foreign currency worth Rs 1.17 crore in Kozhikode airport by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials a few days ago.
This is pointed to be linked to the increase in hawala exchange rate over the rate given by banks. It is said to be also linked to rise in gold smuggling in the reverse direction. Customs data reveal that the foreign currency seized at three airports in the state by various agencies shot up to all time high in 2014-15 at Rs 225.82 lakh.
The value of currency seized was just Rs 47,000 in 2011-12, while it increased to Rs 4.48 lakh in 2012-13 and then declined to Rs 2.76 lakh in 2013-14. The figure for 2015-16 stood at Rs 145.92 lakh till January 31. The number of cases rose from six in 2011-12 to 12 in 2014-15. In this fiscal, till January, 7 cases have been filed.
