ISLAMABAD: April 27, 2023: Sugar smuggling is a whooping business in Pakistan. Of course, its an illegal and harmful activity for the country from which smuggled commodity en routes to other countries .
Since existence smuggling of goods is a common phenomenon in Pakistan. You name wheat, sugar , wheat flour, cooking oil, ghee , fertilizer anything it makes way out to neighbouring countries . One can make counter arguments that smuggling is not restricted to Pakistan, Rather, it’s a global phenomenon. Its true, but the way this phenomenon is on the rise in Pakistan its worrisome.
Now one needs to ponder how smuggling is thriving over the years in Pakistan. To reach to the bottom of the matter one needs to understand the system which enfolds loopholes to provide deep holes for smuggling in Pakistan. Pakistan’s system is perhaps the best system in the world that promotes and protects illegal trade. Its watchdogs play a role of dirty dog by colluding with filthy rich smugglers to facilitate them to grab their share in this dirty business. There are dozens of departments such as Pakistan Customs, local administration including district administration and the police, law enforcing agencies like Rangers , Frontier Constabulary and many more which are supposed to check illegal trade at bordering points, but none takes interest in its legitimate role . Rather, their authorities facilitate illegal trade and get their share in this dirty business. Smuggling is such a big attractions in Pakistan for all concerned departments including the agencies that the posting at known entry points known for smuggling like Torkhum , Tuftan , Qila Saifulah , Qila Abdullah etc are sold at whooping price .
Since top level God father of smugglers are a part of the coalition government led by Shahbaz Sharif their networks have invented new routes to smuggle sugar and other commodities to Afghanistan and Iran this time.
Sugar smuggling is a typical case to understand as to how smuggling networks were operating in Pakistan and how watchdog agencies cooperate with the smugglers to help their authorities make their luck.
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According to official statistics, around 0.450 million tons sugar valuing $ 350 million has been smuggled from Pakistan to Afghanistan and Iran in just last two and half months . Despite media’s best efforts , this illegal activity is continuing and the government has done nothing to stop it. The question arises as if sugar smuggling and subsequent loss of around $ 350 million is not in the notice of the prime minister?. The matter is in very much in the notice of the prime minister, but he seems totally helpless . It seems that those who are involved in sugar smuggling are more powerful than the state . Its one glimpse could be seen in the video clip showing huge quantity of sugar being smuggled to Afghanistan via Torkhum border in the National Logestic Cell (NLC) long wheeler.
The recent incident of land sliding close to Torkhum border point has shocked everyone who believed that National Logistic Cell (NLC) can not be a part to dirty business of sugar smuggling and this myth might have worked for long time had a NLC container apparently cement for Afghanistan had it not exposed to a land sliding. The incident exposed the NLC real face. The stocks that littered on the road after land sliding was not cement rather it was sugar.
A clop of the land sliding is enough to expose NLC as sugar smuggler entity. This correspondent made many attempt to reach out to NLC officials for their version on the issue but the lady who attended the landline phone number 051 9052525 could not connect to the official spokesman named Rehman sahib.