On December 4, 2020, the 63rd Founding Day of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) was observed virtually which was attended by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) and Ministry of Finance.
- DRI is the apex anti-smuggling intelligence and investigation agency functioning under the aegis of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).
- During the occasion Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled “Smuggling in India Report 2019-20”which analysed smuggling trends on Gold & Foreign Currency, Narcotic Drugs, Security, Environment, Commercial Frauds.
Key Highlights of Report:
–DRI detected 412 cases of smuggling resulting in the seizure of contraband worth Rs 1,949 crore in 2019-20.
–It arrested 837 economic offenders and also unearthed 761 complex cases of Customs duty evasion amounting to Rs 2,183 crore.
–The agency seized 174.50 metric tonne of red sanders along with smuggled cigarettes worth Rs 77 crore.
–It also rescued endangered animals and birds
–During a three-day long operation codenamed “Calypso” in November 2020, the DRI busted an international drug smuggling racket with the seizure of 3.3 kg of cocaine.
Award Ceremony:
On this occasion, Bravery Awards were conferred upon Najimudheen T S of DRI Cochin Zonal Unit and Sumer Sen, an independent witness of a case booked by DRI, Jaipur.
- The DRI Utkrisht Seva Samman, 2020 was awarded to B. Sankaran, an officer of the 1961 batch of the Indian Revenue Service (Customs & Central Excise) for his years of distinguished and committed service.
Other Participants:
Finance Secretary Dr. Ajay Bhushan Pandey, CBIC Chairman M. Ajit Kumar, and DRI Principal Director General Balesh Kumar
Recent Related News:
i.On October 28, 2020, the 10th Round of Ministerial the United Kingdom (UK)-India Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) was held virtually where India was represented by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and UK delegation was led by Chancellor of Exchequer, Rishi Sunak.
ii.On October 12, 2020, Nirmala Sitharaman announced measures of Rs 73,000 crore to stimulate consumer spending before the end of this Financial Year (FY21) to fight the COVID-19 lockdown induced slowdown, during a press conference in New Delhi.
About Ministry of Finance:
Nirmala Sitharaman constituency– Karnataka
Minister of State (MoS)– Anurag Singh Thakur
