The captioned letters in your esteemed daily reveals an eye-catching scam of 200 billion rupees. Malpractice, over a decade back, when importers paid unwittingly, unwarranted, illegal charges has assumed the proportion of a scam, making importers conscious of exploitation. But, the authorities are unmoved.
Apathy to the scam of this magnitude is evidence of official patronage for unabashed, illegal recoveries. I dare say that the high-ups contrived and manoeuvred to (i) merge all the charges and rename it "Logistic" charges (ii) legitimise illegal charges, through dubious means (iii) shunted and rotated the issue to and between Revenue Division, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Ports and Shipping (iv) obviated addressing the issue through the ineffective Shipping Rates Advisory Board, constituted in 2001 and now through the proposed futile Shipping Rates Advisory Committee to "regulate shipping rates" that it not applicable at all.
The issue is simple: Adhere to applicable law, rules and procedures; but it is tactically made complicated, confused to not resolve it. Licensees of KPT/Ministry of Ports & Shipping blatantly recovered charges not applicable or recovered excess than applicable and specified in the Schedule of Charges under the KPT Act.
The Wafaqi Mohtasib (Ombudsman) in his findings dated 31.5.2008 observed: "The Terminal Operators cannot change, on their own, any rates without the approval of the Agency. "The Agency is duty-bound to ensure that the charges, which have been fixed as per Implementation Agreement, are strictly adhered to". But, the findings are yet to be implemented, which proves that either the Agency is above the law or is impotent, or the Terminal Operators are defying lawful orders and have powerful backing.