Bangalore Divisions Chief Commissioner

Mrs. LALITHA JOHN, I.R.S.,

CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF CUSTOMS, BANGALORE ZONE

Mrs Lalitha John was born in Delhi and raised in different States across the country. She has a Post Graduate Degree in English from the University of Kerala. Prior to joining the Indian Customs & Central Excise Service (in 1974), she worked as a Lecturer in English at Teresian College, Mysore and St. Teresa’s College, Ernakulam (Kochi). In the Department, she has served in various capacities at Kochi, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Bangalore, Pune & Vishakapatnam. In 1994, she obtained a Post Graduate Degree in Fiscal Studies from the School of Social Sciences, University of Bath, England (UK). She has attended the Management Development Programme at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration at Mussoorie.

She loves forests and its inhabitants. She has an abiding interest in conservation, environmental issues and sustainable development. Books and music keep her engaged in her spare time. Her reading interest revolves around social anthropology, trans-personal psychology, philosophy and metaphysics.

She was promoted as Chief Commissioner in January 2006 and posted to Vishakapatnam. She also served as the Registrar of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore for about 2 years.

CHIEF COMMISSIONER OFFICE

Introduction:

The erstwhile Bangalore Customs zone was created on 17.11.1997 with the posting of Shri N Obhrai as the first Chief Commissioner of Customs & Central Excise, Bangalore Zone. A separate Customs Zone has been carved out of this zone w.e.f. 01-11-2002 as per Notification No.14/2002 (as ammended). The Zonal office is located at Bangalore. At present, Smt. Lalitha John is the Chief Commissioner of Customs, Bangalore Zone.

Jurisdiction:

The jurisdiction of this Zone originally comprised of the States of Karnataka & Kerala. The jurisdiction of the Zone has been revised and now consists of only two Commissionerates of Bangalore Customs and Mangalore Customs in Karnataka State Vide Notification No. 26/2008 –Customs (N.T) dated 12.03.2008. The territorial jurisdiction of the Zone extends to the whole of Karnataka. In addition there are two Commissioners (Appeals) in this Zone located at Bangalore & Mangalore, who are independent Appellate authorities dealing with appeals filed against the orders of the officers lower in the rank to that of a Commissioner. A bench of Customs, Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), which deals with appeals against orders passed by the officers of the rank of Commissioner, is also set up in Bangalore. In the jurisdiction of this Zone there are two International Airports located at Bangalore & Mangalore & one major sea port at Mangalore, besides a number of minor ports. There is one Air Cargo Complex & one Inland Container Depot at Bangalore.

Functions:

The Chief Commissioner exercises supervision and control over the Customs Commissionerates of this Zone and is responsible for monitoring revenue collection, disposal of pendencies, redressal of grievances etc. The Chief Commissioner also ensures greater coordination among the Commissionerates within the Zone and more effective interaction with the Central Board of Customs & Excise, New Delhi. Further he also discharges certain statutory functions bestowed on him under the Customs statute.

Revenue realization (net) from the Zone was: (Rs. in Crores)
2001 - 2002	2710
2002 - 2003	3490
2003 - 2004	3926
2004 - 2005	4115
2005 - 2006	3835
2006 - 2007	5008
2007 - 2008	5749
2008 - 2009	3664 (Revenue of Bangalore & Mangalore Commissionerates only)
2009-10 (up to 02/2010)	2515.22 (Revenue of Bangalore & Mangalore Commissionerates only)

Disclaimer