Directorate of Revenue Intelligence alerts international airports to check black money during polls

NEW DELHI: All international airports, ports and land borders in the country have been put on alert by the revenue intelligence agency to check circulation of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) and black money during ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence ( DRI), the lead agency to check smuggling and import duty evasion, has asked customs officials posted at international transit points to remain extra vigilant during the Lok Sabha polls and keep a check on passengers and baggages coming from sensitive sectors including the Gulf, official sources said.

The alert was issued some time back following an input that there may be a spurt in smuggling of fake currency notes from abroad during the polls, they said.

There are 18 international airports in the country-- Amritsar, Jaipur, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Nagpur, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kozhikode, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Port Blair.

Customs officials have been also asked to be alert at international transit land routes, including the Attari-Wagah border (Punjab) and Munabao Railway Station in Jodhpur (Rajasthan), among others, the sources said.

"Ports along the country's coast lines bringing in cargo from other nations have also been alerted to keep a check on smuggling of fake currency notes and circulation of black money," an official said.

The customs officials are also maintaining a strict vigil on frequent passengers to and from Gulf nations and South East sector (Malaysia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand, among others).