Vizianagaram, 14 June 2019: FICCI CASCADE (Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Activities Destroying the Economy) organized a capacity building programme on prevention of counterfeiting, smuggling and piracy for police officials of Andhra Pradesh at the Police Training Center on Friday.
It is part of FICCI CASCADE’s capacity building programmes aimed at sensitizing and training enforcement officers to emphasize on the seriousness of the impact of counterfeit and smuggled goods. Such illicit trading practices not only causes huge losses to the government and industry but is also causing significant economic, health and safety consequences for the society at large.
Mr D. Rama Chandra Raju, Principal, Police Training Centre, Vizianagaram emphasized that the police is a primary law enforcement agency and have a significant role to play in fighting the menace of smuggling and counterfeiting. He stated that although counterfeiting was looked at as a victimless crime, it had many far-reaching consequences and it was extremely important for a police officer to understand the consequences before taking actions on ground. He commended FICCI CASCADE for taking this maiden initiative in Andhra Pradesh for training police officers on the critical area of illicit trade.
Mr Deep Chand, Advisor, FICCI CASCADE stated that FICCI CASCADE reports estimate that in India the loss to the government on account of illicit markets in just seven manufacturing sectors is Rs 39,239 crores. The estimated loss to the industry is Rs 1,05,381 crores, an increase of 44.4% in two years. He further added that this loss is just the tip of the iceberg. The grey market economy is fueling illegitimate industry and leading to increased criminalization of the society in the form of organized crime including terrorism. Global studies have indicated that criminal syndicates all over have taken to counterfeiting and smuggling to fund their nefarious activities.
Dr P. Tirumala, Associate Professor, Lendi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Mr Timothy K. Browning, Attorney-Advisor, US Patents and Trademarks Office, Washington, Mr C.N.S.P. Krishna Rao, Advocate, Mr Milind Palany, Senior Manager, Global Brand Protection, India & South Asia, Johnson and Johnson, Mr Akshay Sangwan, Manager - Brand Protection and Legal Affairs, Puma and Ms Shakthi Priya, Legal Consultant, Hindustan Unilever Ltd also shared their perspectives on the issues of counterfeiting, piracy and smuggling.
FICCI CASCADE has been successful in stirring an active debate on the topic nationally through various awareness programmes. Among other activities, FICCI CASCADE has been organizing capacity building programs for police officers in various states, focusing on economic offences such as counterfeiting, piracy and smuggling, equipping the officers to understand the laws and take requisite action against counterfeiters and smugglers.