Six Pakistanis nabbed with 62 kg drugs worth ₹480 crore off Gujarat coast

In a multi-agency operation, Indian authorities intercepted a boat carrying 62 kg of drugs worth about ₹480 crore and arrested its six Pakistani crew members on Tuesday, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) said in a release.

Based on specific intelligence, a joint team of the Indian Coast Guard, Narcotics Control Bureau and Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) conducted an operation under codename “SAGAR-MANTHAN -2” in the Arabian Sea near the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) on March 8. In the early hours of March 12, the team successfully intercepted a foreign vessel carrying 6 Pakistani nationals and approximately 62kg of methamphetamine.

"A vessel carrying nearly 60 packets of contraband was seized around 180 nautical miles off the Porbandar coast. The boat with six Pakistani crew members is now being brought in for further investigation," the statement read.

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“Early investigations indicate that the final destination of the seized drug may probably be Delhi-NCR and Punjab,” the statement added.

“All the six persons suspected to be Pakistani citizens have been detained and the Pakistan connection is being probed”, the NCB said.

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Meanwhile, Reuters reported that the boat along with its crew “is being brought to Porbandar (in Gujarat) for further investigation."

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This is the second major anti-narcotics operation carried out by the agencies in the Arabian Sea in one month. On February 26, five foreign nationals were held off the Porbandar coast with 3,300 kg of narcotics, including charas.