Kailali. The Satti Customs Office based in Tikapur municipality-9 has collected 60 per cent of the target revenue in the first eight months of the current fiscal year. Although the customs office has collected 60 per cent of the annual target, it has to collect 40 per cent revenue in the remaining four months. The office had set a target of collecting Rs 158.44 million revenue in the current fiscal year but it has collected Rs 96.24 million till mid-March.

The office has collected Rs 63.37 million in revenue in the month of July, the lowest of the target. Office Chief Chakra Bahadur Soni said that only 49.17 per cent of the target was collected even though Rs 128.90 million was to be collected for the month of August. According to him, the highest revenue collection of Rs 16.77 million or 138.51 per cent of the target was collected in December. The customs office had set the target of collecting Rs 12.11 million revenue in November.

In the past eight months, the office has collected more revenue than the target in four months while it has not been able to collect revenue as per the target in the last four months. According to the office, revenue collection exceeded the target in September, November, December and January. It has not been able to achieve the target in the remaining months of July, August, October and February.

Soni said that the customs office will achieve the target of revenue collection in four months. “The target of revenue collection will be determined by the extent of import of goods. According to him, there are challenges in revenue collection as many cases of theft and import take place due to open border. Customs Chief Soni expressed the belief that revenue would be collected in billions, not millions, if the quarantine was established after upgrading the customs office.

Last year, the customs office had collected 119 per cent of the target. Against the target of Rs 12.07 crore, revenue of Rs 14.37 crore was collected. In the last three years, the customs office has collected less revenue than the target. In the fiscal year 2080/81, out of the target of Rs 1201.47 million, Rs 100.24 million was collected. Similarly, in the fiscal year 2079/80, the customs office could collect only Rs 75 million against the revenue target of Rs 169.44 million.

Even in the fiscal year 2078/79, Satti Customs could not achieve the revenue target. The customs office could collect only Rs 106.793 million against the target of Rs 2058 million. In the fiscal year 2020/20, the customs office had collected Rs 158.33 million in revenue.