One held with 12 MT of red sanders wood worth Rs 5cr from port in Hazira

Surat: Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials seized 12 metric tonne (MT) of red sanders wood from a private port in Hazira and arrested one person, who was illegally trying to export it.
Official sources said the DRI had intelligence input that smugglers were attempting to send red sanders wood to a country in the Gulf from this port in Hazira. DRI officers from Surat intercepted the container destined for export on Tuesday and seized 12 MT of prohibited red sanders wood or red sandalwood valued at Rs5 crore. The red sanders logs were concealed in a consignment of scrap material.

Red sanders, botanical name Pterocarpus santalinus, is a non-fragrant variety of sandalwood, which is used for making musical instruments. The species has negligible utilization within the country. The red sanders wood is a protected species under convention of international trade in endangered species (CITIES) of wild fauna and flora. Until 2014, auction of trade of even seized logs was banned. China, Japan, Malaysia and the UAE are primary destination for red sanders wood that is mainly smuggled from ports in Chennai and Mumbai, sources added. tnn