From: The Tribune Express (India) with The New York Times
By Hidayat Khan
PESHAWAR: Despite tall claims that a special intelligence wing has been formed to curtail smuggled and counterfeit brands, non-paid duty (DNP) cigarettes continue to flood the markets in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P).
Wholesalers involved in the business blame authorities, pointing out the presence but lack of implementation of laws.
“If authorities wanted, we would never be able to sell a single stick of the DNP cigarette,” a wholesaler in Firdous market said. He acknowledges the situation but says that this isn’t a “crime against the country”.
He added that cigarettes enter the country through different routes and reach Karkhano, the biggest markets of illegal products. “There are huge stores of such products in Karkhano. They are then transported to other parts of the country without any hurdle.”
