KOCHI: Tonnes of red sanders, a highly valued and endangered fragrant wood, will go under the hammer in Kerala.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) will soon float a global tender for actioning about 150 tonnes of the wood logs, seized over the past one decade. The most internationally trafficked timber has been stocked in various godowns across Kochi. The DRI had identified Vallarpadam International Container Terminal as one of the most preferred shipment points for the red sander cartel in the country. The Central agency had, in the past, intercepted several containers of the wood, which was in the process of being clandestinely exported from here.
“A special notification to overcome the ban on export has been issued and the auctioning procedure, which requires the cleaning and grading of the wood for auction, will be soon set rolling’’, said a senior DRI official.
The export ban under the Foreign Trade Policy has, for long, stood between several crores of rupees accruing to the government kitty and a total loss of the precious wood.
The deciduous tree, one of the most valued and trafficked forest commodity in the country, is an endangered species that grows naturally in the Seshachalam Hills and adjoining areas of Andhra Pradesh. Smuggling of the wood took off after it was put on the endangered list in 2000, leading to a ban on its felling, sale and export.
While red sanders have little use and hence a low market value in India, it is in great demand in countries such as China and Japan where it is used for making furniture and cosmetics. It is also used for occult purposes, sources said.
“Through global tendering, we expect some major buyers for this huge quantity, which can translate into a huge revenue to the government kitty’’, the official said.
The buyers would be given an option to export the stock after getting the licence and other certificates from the Director General of Foreign Trade.
The other day, DRI sleuths here had stopped about 12 tonnes of red sanders worth ₹3 crore, while it was in the process of being exported from the Vallarpadam container terminal. The red sander logs, stacked in two 40-foot containers, were being exported to Hong Kong via Dubai. Efforts are on to trace the Mumbai-based agency, which booked the containers, officials said.
Meanwhile, officials said that there has been a sharp fall in the smuggling of red sanders through the Kochi port.
“The last major case was reported in 2015, when we intercepted a one-tonne consignment from a godown. But the trade seems to be back on the revival path as evident from a few cases being reported from Tamil Nadu over the past couple of months,” officials held.