New Delhi: There have been 46 copyright cases over the last two years and the Gujarat Police have managed to seize counterfeit goods worth Rs 12.5 crore, said Saurabh Tolumbia, Deputy Inspector General of Police, CID (Crime and Railways), adding that the recent biggest seizure in Gujarat included duplicate versions of sunglasses of a high-end brand, worth Rs 6 crore.

Addressing the ‘Capacity Building Programme for Police Officers on Prevention of Counterfeiting and Smuggling’ organized by FICCI’s Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Activities Destroying the Economy (CASCADE) on Friday, Tolumbia said: “There have been 46 copyright cases over the last 2 years and Gujarat Police have managed to seize counterfeit goods worth Rs 12.5 Crore.”

He further said that the police have seized duplicate watches of high-end brands, amounting to more than Rs 3 crore 31 lakh, and duplicate mobile accessories worth Rs 83 lakh. PC Jha, Advisor, FICCI CASCADE and former Chairman, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, said, “The illegal activities of counterfeiting and smuggling are flooding the market with substandard fake goods which are produced without following quality norms at unhygienic places, and are sold without issuing bills, thus contributing towards increase in unaccounted money.”

Deep Chand, Advisor, FICCI CASCADE and former Special Commissioner of Police, New Delhi, highlighted the global estimates of illicit trade. He said that the wider social, investment and criminal enforcement costs due to smuggling and counterfeiting could touch $4.2 trillion by 2022, putting at risk 5.4 million legitimate jobs. As per the recent study, in the FY 2018-19 Indian economy loses Rs 1,17,253 crore due to smuggling in the five key sectors and total livelihood opportunities lost is 16.36 lakhs, he added.

Nitin Saluja, Senior Policy Manager, Customer Trust, Amazon India, discussed about Amazon’s efforts in mitigating fraud and abuse on marketplaces that hamper customer trust and how Amazon via its various initiatives puts in enormous resources to deliver on its established tenets and to make its marketplace a reliable and safe platform for customers, brands, and sellers to conduct transactions.

FICCI CASCADE has been over the years working closely with government, industry, enforcement officials, legal fraternity, consumer organizations and the youth to create awareness on the adverse impact of the problem of counterfeiting and smuggling.  Among other activities, FICCI CASCADE has been regularly engaging with law enforcement agencies including police, customs and paramilitary organizations engaged in border protection in sensitizing them on the gravity of the problem. /BI/