Page 116 - DRI ANNUAL REPORT EBOOK

Phase III
(Nov 2019 – Jan 2020):
62 countries, INTERPOL, RILO (AP, CIS, WE) & WCO
India, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand
682.36 MT and 709.14 cubic meters
Red Sanders, Siamese Rosewood, other Rosewoods, Burma Padauk, Guatemalan fir
A total of 8 timber species were reported to be intercepted by participating members. Red Sanders seizures were reported in 10 cases in which 107.58 tons were seized. Illegal trade in Red Sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus) is fuelled by a very high demand of the same outside India (to which it is endemic), particularly, in China. The smugglers were found to use intermediate destinations for these illegal shipments, such as UAE, Hong Kong SAR (China), Malaysia or Singapore according to shipment documents. These intermediate destinations and routes have been used to avoid targeting of the shipments by Customs through Risk Profiling.
V. Conclusion
DRI remains committed to the cause of international enforcement cooperation through various platforms including international operations, both multilateral and bilateral as also by way of establishing and strengthening regular communication channels for intelligence and information exchange. While, it is imperative to facilitate international trade through strong global supply chains, it is equally important to prevent any mis-use of these supply chains for purposes other than what they are meant for. The objective of participating in these operations is not just to detect and seize the goods, but to disrupt these illegal supply chains and bust the multinational syndicates by joining hands of the global enforcement authorities.
82 SMUGGLING IN INDIA REPORT 2019-20