India: Association of Customs Officers warns of sharp increase in illegal imports, calls for Government intervention

Source: pfionline.com The Cashew Association of India has issued a warning about the sudden surge in the illegal import of cashews, particularly from Vietnam and some African countries, stating that this phenomenon is severely undermining the domestic cashew industry and threatening the livelihoods of thousands of workers. According to the Association, a large quantity of cashews is being brought into India through deceitful declarations, mislabeled as non-cashew items to evade import regulations and customs duties. These shipments, as per the Association's assessment, are flooding the domestic market, putting immense pressure on local processing facilities that are already grappling with high raw material costs and weak demand. In a letter to the Union Commerce Minister, M. Ramakrishnan, the Secretary General of the Cashew Association of India, stated that the cashew industry is under "unprecedented pressure." He emphasized that many cashew processing plants across the country ...