State Minister for Finance Mr. Ranjith Siyambalapitiya says that 12 lakh kilos of illegally imported sugar (1200 metric tons of sugar) has been confiscated.
The Minister has mentioned this in a statement.
Brown sugar, whose import is currently restricted, has been illegally imported by a businessman and the brown sugar has been hidden among the white sugar in the container.
The minister also participated in monitoring the relevant sugar stock and pointed out that at this time when the country is facing an acute shortage of dollars, everyone should act in accordance with the law.
Stating that we are in such a serious foreign exchange problem that even a dollar should be protected, the minister also states that in such a situation, the responsibility of the businessmen or the common people is to act according to the rules and regulations imposed by the government.
The Minister also mentions that if such an illegal incident occurs, it can be reported to the Central Intelligence Division of Sri Lanka Customs on the 24-hour telephone number 0112-471471 and to the Director General of Customs on the telephone number 0112-347881.
The Minister also mentions that the Customs will protect the parties who provide information and offer special rewards for them.
The minister also stated that the raid was conducted based on the suspicion that a customs official had bought brown sugar in the market and the minister further stated that since Sri Lanka produces enough brown sugar locally, the import of that sugar has been restricted.
(motherland)
