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Five Pakistani nationals were apprehended after the Indian Coast Guard intercepted an Iranian dhow carrying around 526 kg of heroin and methamphetamine worth more than Rs 3,000 crore in the international market in the Arabian Sea, west of Lakshadweep.
The operation, carried out jointly with the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), was launched on September 25 following actionable intelligence about a suspected narcotics consignment moving through the Arabian Sea.
Coast Guard assets used sea and air surveillance to track the vessel before moving in to intercept and board it. The dhow was subsequently brought under control and the five-member crew taken into custody.
The scale of the seizure makes the operation one of the most significant recent maritime narcotics interceptions in the region. The consignment comprised heroin and methamphetamine, both of which are high-value narcotics in international trafficking networks.
The dhow, crew and seized contraband have been escorted to Mumbai under armed security, where they are being handed over for joint interrogation and further legal proceedings involving multiple agencies.
The operation also highlights the growing importance of intelligence-led maritime surveillance in detecting vessels suspected of carrying narcotics across the Arabian Sea. The Coast Guard has been maintaining surveillance over India’s maritime approaches, working with central and state security agencies to track and intercept suspicious vessels.
The seizure comes against the backdrop of sustained attempts by international drug-trafficking networks to use maritime routes to move narcotics towards the Indian coast.
The Coast Guard said the operation underlines its capability to combine sea-air surveillance, intelligence inputs and rapid maritime interception to disrupt such trafficking networks before consignments reach the mainland.
Team BharatShakti
