In a major action against the smuggling of environmentally hazardous e-waste into India, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted an international racket of illegal import of used electronic goods.
In a targeted operation codenamed Operation DigiScrap, the team of DRI in Mumbai seized consignments valued at approximately Rs 23 crore and arrested the Surat-based mastermind behind the smuggling attempt.
The investigation revealed that the consignments, declared as Aluminium Treat Scrap, were in fact loaded with 17,760 old and used laptops, 11,340 mini/barebone CPUs, 7,140 processor chips and other electronic components.
The goods were cleverly concealed behind a few rows of aluminium scrap in four containers at Nhava Sheva Port.
The entire consignment has been seized under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, DRI officials said.
Import of such old/used or refurbished laptops, CPUs and electronic components is prohibited under the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2023, the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022, and the Electronics and IT Goods (Compulsory Registration) Order, 2021, which requires strict compliance with BIS safety and labelling norms.
“These provisions are aimed at preventing public health hazards, environmental damage, and unfair threats to the domestic electronics manufacturing sector,” officials said.
The arrested individual, Director of the importing firm based in Surat, was found to be the key conspirator involved in planning, procurement, financing and execution of the smuggling operation. He has been remanded to judicial custody.
This interdiction underscores DRI’s unwavering commitment to safeguard the country against the dumping of hazardous e-waste, which poses serious ecological and health risks, while also protecting India’s domestic industry from the menace of illicit imports.