History
Introduction:
Delhi Customs is an organization under the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), Ministry of Finance. Delhi Customs is the lead agency monitoring Import and Export of goods through Delhi Airport and ICDs located in National Capital Territory of Delhi and Haryana. This organization is responsible to facilitating genuine Importers/Exporters and to enforce customs laws as well as other associated Acts and provisions related to the Import and Export of goods.
History of Delhi Airport:
The first airport of Delhi, the Safdurjang Airport, was built around 1930. The airport, earlier known as Palam Airport, was built around the World War II and served as an Air Force Station for the Indian Air Force. Passenger operations were later shifted to the airport from Safdurjang Airport in 1962 due to an increase in traffic. Palam Airport had a peak capacity of around 1300 passengers per hour. Owing to an increase in air traffic in the 1970s, an additional terminal with nearly four times the area of the old Palam terminal was constructed. With the inauguration of a new international terminal (Terminal 2), on 2 May 1986, the airport was renamed as Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport.
On 31 Jan 2006, the then Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel announced that the empowered Group of Ministers has agreed to hand over the management of Delhi Airport to the DIAL consortium and the Mumbai airport to the GVK-led consortium. On May 2, 2006, the management of Delhi and Mumbai airports was handed over to the private consortia. Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) is a consortium of the GMR Group (50.1%), Fraport AG (10%) and Malaysia Airports (10%), India Development Fund (3.9%) and the Airports Authority of India retains a 26% stake.
The old Palam terminal is now known as Terminal 1 and handles all domestic flights. Indira Gandhi International Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport (IATA: DEL, ICAO: VIDP) is the primary airport of the National Capital Region of Delhi, situated in West Delhi, 16 km (10 mi) southwest of New Delhi’s city center. Named after Indira Gandhi, the former Prime Minister of India, it is the busiest airport in India in terms of daily flight traffic and second busiest in term of passenger traffic in India after Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. With the commencement of operations at the new Terminal 3, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has become India’s and South Asia’s largest and most important aviation hub.
History of Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad:
With a view to bring the facilities of transportation and Customs clearance of import and export cargo at the doorstep of importers and exporters, an Inland Container Depot was set up at Pragati Maidan in 1983 under the control of an Assistant Collector of Customs. Indian Railways were nominated the custodian of the goods. In 1984, a Container Freight Station (CFS) was also opened at Patparganj which was an extension of ICD, Pragati Maidan and Central Warehousing Corporation was nominated as its custodian. M/s. Container Corporation of India Ltd. (CONCOR) was set up which took over the responsibilities of custodian from Indian Railways for ICD: Pragati Maidan. Within a decade of its inception, the volume of work at ICD had increased to such an extent that it became difficult to handle it at Pragati Maidan. It was then decided (in 1983) to shift the venue of ICD from Pragati Maidan to its present location i.e. at Tughlakabad. In 1995, the CFS : Patparganj was upgraded to a full fledged ICD with C.W.C. continuing as custodian of the goods. Movement of containers by road was also permitted in addition to the movement of containers by rail through Tughlakabad.
ICD, Tughlakabad (TKD), Patparganj and other ICDs of Haryana caters to the need of importers and exporters based in Northern India. ICD, Tughlakabad is situated near Okhla Industrial Area and is spread over 44 hectares of land. It has three storied Administrative block housing Offices of Customs, CONCOR, Bank, Shipping Lines, CHAs and Surveyors. Four full length rail lines are available in the Customs area which bring the containers by train from Gateway ports such as Mumbai, Nhava Sheva, Chennai, besides bringing the containers by road from other ports such as Haldia, Calcutta and Kandla, etc. ICD, TKD is equipped with most modern facilities such as rail mounted gantry of 40 metric empty lifting capacity, rubber tyre diesel powered cranes, billoties and lift trucks, etc. Two covered sheds, one for import and another for export with a total area of 16,000 sq. mts. has been provided in the Customs area for stuffing and de-stuffing of import and export goods. With these facilities, ICD, TKD, New Delhi, has developed into the largest hub of multi-modal transport in the Indian sub-continent.