Consider this: Consumer goods seized by the Customs department has dropped by 80 per cent since 1992. The National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India (NCCFI) is buying 10 per cent of what it used to from the Customs department in the '80s. And NCCFI, the only authorised organisation that buys from Customs, sells the goods to just ``10 to 12 active co-operative societies'' in the city.

The goods coming through these channels are not even enough to stock one shop. Which is why the only authorised customs shop in the city, which is the New Customs House building near the international airport, has been under lock and key for a while now. ``We have no stocks,'' explains a Customs official. ``The shop hasn't opened for a while now and going by the quantity of goods that are seized today, it is unlikely to do roaring business like it used to''.

While the Customs home store has its shutters down, shops around the city continue to sell products under the garb of customs seized goods. Moreover, the stocks that are being cleared by the Customs department now are old consignments which have been through long court cases. ``Only in cases where the court proceedings have been completed are the goods sold,'' explains a official. ``And the few consignments that are sold now are at least four to five years old.'' The procedure used to dispose of Customs seized goods is simple. The Customs department sells the consumer goods they seize to the NCCFI, which in turn sells them to ``notified cooperatives''.

Om Prakash Upadhyaya, branch manager, NCCFI (Delhi), explains: ``We do not do any retailing. We only sell to cooperatives in Delhi. But this system has lost its relevance now considering the fact that foreign manufacturers have their retailers in India now. Moreover, the craze for these goods is not there any more because the goods are freely available''.

Yet, the man behind the counter at one such self-styled custom shop insists that they sell genuine goods only. Opened a year back, this shop in Lajpat Nagar is choc-a-block with foreign goods. ``Genuine maal hai,'' he assures his customers, displaying T-shirts and tank tops.

NCCFI officials, however, say that they are not selling a lot of these goods anymore.

But it is on these goods that shopkeepers are making profits. The price at which the goods will be sold to the consumer is decided by the price fixing committee of the Customs department. A margin of 14-and-a-half per cent is given to all the marketing agencies involved. Of this, NCCFI keeps around six per cent and the rest is pocketed by the shopkeeper.