look news india
A ship carrying banned chemicals being sent by China to Pakistan has been seized by India at Kattupalli port in Tamil Nadu. The ship was carrying 103 drums of the banned chemical ortho-chloro benzylidene malononitrile (CS), weighing 2560 kg.
These chemicals are used to make teargas and riot control weapons. The consignment was sent by Chinese company Chengdu Sichen Trading Co. Ltd to defence supplier Rohail Enterprises in Rawalpindi on April 18, 2024. The seized ship was sailing under the flag of Hyundai Shanghai Cyprus. It was then seized by customs officials during a routine check on May 8, 2024.
The consignment has been seized under the Customs Act 1962 and the Weapons of Mass Destruction and Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act 2005. In March, a ship carrying a consignment of material used for Pakistan's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes was seized by Indian security agencies at Mumbai's Nhava Sheva port. The ship was headed to Karachi via China. The use of such banned chemicals in Pak is in the context of defence cooperation between China and Pakistan. Officials feared it would be used against the people of India.
What is Ortho-Chloro Benzylidene Malononitrile?
Ortho Chloro Benzylidene Malononitrile is a listed chemical under the Wassenaar Convention and is under export control. India is a signatory to this agreement but China and Pakistan are not a part of it so both these countries are not in a position to receive these chemicals.
