NEW DELHI: In a major action against contraband, the Indian Navy has seized a fishing vessel carrying 300 kilograms of narcotics on the western coast in the Arabian Sea.
This is in continuation with multiple successful operations of catching such a large cache of contraband by the security forces in recent months.
Personnel deployed in Naval Ship Suvarna, while on surveillance patrol in the Arabian Sea, encountered a fishing vessel with suspicious movements. The Navy personnel conducted search operations after boarding the vessel and seized more than 300 kg of narcotics substances.
The Navy said: The vessel with the confiscated contraband and five arrested crew members docked at Kochi port on Monday morning. All of them are Sri Lankan nationals."
The approximate cost of the catch in the international market is estimated to be Rs 3,000 crore.”
“This is a major catch not only in terms of the quantity and cost but also from the perspective of disruption of the illegal narcotics smuggling routes, which emanate from the Makran coast (Pakistan) and flow towards the Indian, Maldivian, and Sri Lankan destinations.”, said the Navy
As per the Navy, the investigation is not yet complete. “The boat with its crew has been escorted to Kochi port in Kerala for further investigation.”
Apart from the human costs from drug addiction, the spoils of narcotics trade feed syndicates involved in terrorism, radicalization, and criminal activities, added Navy.
In the past year, the Indian Coast Guard has successfully seized more than 1.6 tons of narcotics worth approx Rs 5,200 crore. The total drug haul done by ICG since inception amounts to Rs 11,252 crore.