Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs
North Block, New Delhi-110 001
Tel. : +91-11-23092849, Fax : +91-11-23092890
E-mail : vivekjohri.irs@gov.in
DO No. 20/CH(IC)/2022
18th April, 2022
The other week, I received a set of Calvin and Hobbes books. Arguably, a classic of sardonic wit and humour, their antics never cease to amuse and illuminate.
One that I particularly like goes as follows. Calvin and Hobbes enjoy a day off, playing outdoors. Hobbes asks Calvin if he has an idea for the story he has to write for homework. Calvin responds, “I am waiting for inspiration. You can’t just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.” Hobbs asks what mood that might be? Pat responds Calvin, “Last minute Panic”!
Time management is often the most crucial attribute of successful individuals and for most efficient organizations. This week, in order to have a better understanding of time taken for various Customs processes, the National Time Release Study (NTRS) 2022 was released. The study covered 15 major Customs formations and was complemented with a number of local TRSs.
The study indicates further improvement in our trade facilitation endeavor and reports a significant decline in average cargo release time across all port categories. It also reaffirms that the four-fold ‘path to promptness’ – advance filing of import documents to enable pre-arrival processing; risk based facilitation of cargo; benefits of trusted clients program – Authorized Economic Operators and Direct Port Delivery (DPD) facility, results in substantial reduction in the average release time. The average release times (time taken from arrival of the goods at the Port to grant of Let Export Order) has also significantly reduced.
Reduced dwell times are a significant factor in ensuring the robustness of our supply chains and the competitiveness of our exports. My congratulations to the TRS team led by Sh. Vijay Singh Chauhan, Commissioner, Customs Authority for Advance Ruling and Sh. Gaurav Masaldan, Joint Secretary (Customs) as well as officers associated with the conduct of local TRSs for presenting such insightful reports in a timely manner. You may like to go through the reports and necessary steps may be taken to further reduce the release times.
Moving ahead, in an endeavour to further automate our systems and enhance trade facilitation, the Directorate General of Systems & Data Management, launched the Customs EDI Systems at Land Customs Station Srimantapur, Tripura on the Indo-Bangladesh border. This is expected to further reduce dwell time for cargo while simultaneously enhancing compliance.
Last week, Meerut Customs & CGST Zone held a GST and Audit Conference titled “VIMARSH”. The event saw enthusiastic participation from officers of the Zone. Issues related to revenue augmentation, key result areas, thematic Audit of sunrise sectors and sunrise technologies were discussed. In the course of the Conference, a booklet titled “A Concise Compendium on Desk Review Process” was released. Kudos to Pr. Chief Commissioner, Sh. P.K. Goel and his team for taking this initiative.
Before signing off for the week, I would like to extend my heartiest congratulations to 115 officers, promoted to the grade of Joint Commissioners, last week. Best wishes to all of you for a successful and satisfying stint.
Till next week!
Yours Sincerely,
(Vivek Johri)
All Officers and Staff of Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs
