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Container load of industrial chemicals from S’pore turns out to be 15, 200 litres of ethanol
Customs examining contraband (pic courtesy Customs)
By Prabhath Withana
The Customs Central Investigation Bureau officers, on Monday, took into custody a container with 15,200 litres of ethanol worth Rs. 20 million imported from Singapore.
Customs Director General Uditha Jayasinghe said the importers had declared that it was a consignment of industrial chemicals.
Jayasinghe said that the container reached the country on August 9 last year for a company owned by a person who had not engaged in any business activities since 2016.
“The Customs officers sent letters to the company that imported the cargo, informing them to take steps to clear the container from the port. But no one responded. Subsequently, the customs officers decided to open and inspect the container. They found 76 barrels of ethanol each containing 200 litres, while it was declared to contain 12,220 kg of an Industrial Chemical,” Jayasinghe said.
If this consignment had been removed from the port and utilised to distill alcoholic beverages, the total revenue loss from tax due to the government and non-declaration of excise duty would have been Rs. 60 million, the Customs Director General said.
The import of ethanol to Sri Lanka had been prohibited under the Import and Export Control Act as a public policy as well as under the Excise Act, he said.
Chief of Staff to the President and National Security Advisor (NSA) Sagala Ratnayaka led the Sri Lanka delegation to the 20th IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s premier Security Summit held in Singapore from 2 – 4 June 2023.
The highly anticipated summit commenced on 2 June with a powerful Keynote address delivered by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Throughout the event, a series of plenary sessions delved into various crucial geo-political issues, encompassing the establishment of a stable and balanced Asia Pacific, the resolution of regional tensions, the evolution of maritime security in Asia, US leadership in the Indo-Pacific, and China’s latest security initiatives, among other topics.
During the Special Session focusing on ‘Defence Cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region,’ Ratnayaka delivered an impactful statement, participating alongside representatives from India, Oman, France, and the United States. He emphasized the significance of keeping big power rivalries and external conflicts out of the Indian Ocean, highlighting Sri Lanka’s efforts in the United Nations to declare the region as a zone of peace. Furthermore, he underscored the country’s contributions to preserving freedom of navigation and over flight, stressing the crucial need for constructive dialogue among all stakeholders in the Indian Ocean region to pursue shared interests.
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal raised by the Minister of Health to reduce the maximum retail price of 60 medicines by 16% with effect from 15.06.2023 and review the price of medicines every three months
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