Trichy: While the notification for courier cargo service from Trichy airport seems to have been kept in abeyance, a fight over who has to pay for the customs personnel already posted at the cargo section at the airport here is raging between the Customs and the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
Since the refurbished cargo terminal was thrown open to exporters in 2011 November, two superintendents, two inspectors and two sepoys were posted at the cargo section by the Customs and they manage two shifts. Meanwhile, the Customs sent two notices to the AAI to recover establishment cost of about Rs 64 lakh so far and even asked it to deposit three month's pay with it as security deposit.
According to the Central Board of Customs and Excise (CBCE), air cargo complex that handles less than 12,000 tons of cargo and less than 35,000 bills of entry a year would not be exempted from the payment of cost of recovery charges. Around 300 tons of cargo (mostly perishables) have been exported monthly from here, with Sri Lankan alone accounting for more than 50% of the exports.
05/05/13 Times of India
