Customs officials at the port recently seized a 32-tonne shipment from Pakistan that was falsely declared as bird feed but was found to contain 25 tonnes of banned poppy seeds, they said.
The seizure was made by the Audit, Investigation and Research wing of Chattogram (Chittagong) Customs following a tip-off, according to a statement issued by the Bangladesh customs authority.
According to a senior official of the Bangladesh customs department, the importers attempted to smuggle the banned seeds by layering bird food at the container doors to conceal the contraband. Import of poppy seeds is prohibited in Bangladesh.
Chittagong is Bangladesh’s biggest port for global trade. In 2004, an attempt to smuggle 10 trucks of Chinese-made weapons was foiled by local authorities despite involvement of ministers of the then BNP-Jamaat-e-Islami government.
Since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina as Bangladesh Prime Minister in August last year, Pakistan has been working to boost bilateral trade through steps including a significant government-level rice import deal, direct shipping links and agreements to establish a free trade agreement and a joint economic commission.